Legal Opinion
Smith v. Boyle
District Court, C.D. Illinois
Decided April 16, 1997No. 97-3005PublishedCited by 9 opinions
1Opinion of the Court
OPINION
RICHARD MILLS, District Judge:
In the main, federal courts should stay out of political matters. Federal judges have no business meddling in uniquely state questions unless those issues are in direct conflict with the United States Constitution.
In 1877, the U.S. Supreme Court held that to redress legislative action, “the people must resort to the polls, not to the courts.” 1
The bottom line: This Court concludes that the redistricting claim here is a nonjusti-ciable political question that must be left to the legislative and judicial branches of the State of Illinois.
I. BACKGROUND
In…
2Cases cited47 opinions
- Conley v. GibsonSupreme Court of the United States · 1957
- Lujan v. Defenders of WildlifeSupreme Court of the United States · 1992
- Warth v. SeldinSupreme Court of the United States · 1975
- Pennhurst State School and Hospital v. HaldermanSupreme Court of the United States · 1984
- Lewis v. CaseySupreme Court of the United States · 1996
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3Cited by9 opinions
- Texas Democratic Party v. BenkiserCourt of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit · 2006
- Indiana Democratic Party v. RokitaDistrict Court, S.D. Indiana · 2006
- Harold B. Smith and Illinois Republican Party v. Kenneth R. Boyle, in Their Official Capacity as Members of the Illinois State Board of ElectionsCourt of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit · 1998
- McComb v. Superior CourtCourt of Appeals of Arizona · 1997
- Contreras v. Illinois State Board of ElectionsDistrict Court, N.D. Illinois · 2021
4 more not listed; retrieve them via the Exa API.