Lisa Miller and Liberty Counsel Flip State Courts the Finger

In one of the few Virginia cases where a LGBT party to litigation received genuine justice against her former partner, the now "former lesbian" Lisa Miller and her counsel, the Christo-fascist Matt Staver, dean of Liberty University's so-called law school founded by Jerry Falwell, continue to refuse to recognize and comply with rulings from both the Vermont and Virginia Supreme Courts. Both courts upheld Janet Jenkins' visitation rights to the daughter that was born during their civil union formalized under Vermont law. It would seem that the courts need to (1) start sanctioning Staver and Liberty Counsel for continuing to file frivolous suits that fly in the face of the two Supreme Courts' rulings, and (2) put the "former lesbian" in jail for contempt. The case in my view illustrates the mindset of Staver and other virulent anti-gay Christianists who truly believe that they are above the law. Here are some highlights from 365gay.com:

*

(Winchester, Virginia) A woman attempting to keep her former partner from having visitation rights to her daughter is refusing to accept court rulings in two states and the refusal of the US Supreme Court to become involved.

*

Lisa Miller has filed another appeal in the case. This time her attorneys argue that the state of Virginia cannot enforce the federal Parental Kidnapping Prevention Act, which says custody orders of one state must be enforced in other states. Miller, who says she is no longer a lesbian, is represented by the Liberty Counsel which frequently takes up anti-gay cases.

*

Her brief to the Virginia Court of Appeals states that her former partner, Janet Jenkins, has no rights because of the Virginia constitutional amendment that bars same-sex marriage and civil unions. Jenkins is represented by the American Civil Liberties Union of Virginia which has asked for the appeal to be tossed out, arguing that Miller is offering nothing new.

*

In 2007, the Vermont Supreme Court unanimously concluded that “under well-established laws designed to protect children and families” the Vermont Family Court properly ordered visitation between Janet and her daughter. Liberty Counsel appealed to the US Supreme Court, which refused to hear the case. But the battle did not end there.

*
The case then returned to the Virginia Supreme Court which ruled in June that the Vermont high court’s ruling should stand. The court cited the federal Parental Kidnapping Prevention Act, which says custody orders of one state must be enforced in other states. But Miller returned to a lower court in Virginia requesting a halt in the visitation order.

*
Frederick County Circuit Judge John Prosser dismissed the application saying the courts had already ruled in Miller presented no new evidence to reopen the case. Liberty Counsel appealed again to the Virginia Supreme Court which refused to hear the case.

*

In January, a Vermont Family Court judge ruled that Jenkins must be given five weeks of custody in the summer and warned Miller that if she did not comply she risks losing custody of the girl.

*

In my view, one of the lessons of this saga is the danger posed by "law schools" where the rule of law means nothing and religious dogma and extremism trump all else. Liberty University's "law school" is an embarrassment to Virginia. In my opinion, it's the Christianist equivalent of a theocratic Islamic school based on Sharia.