COMING NEXT?

State of Texas

Court of Criminal Appeals

………………………………

People

    v

Harris

…………………………………….

Chief Judge H. Christopher, for the Court:

Defendant Donald J. Harris appeals his conviction for murder in the first degree arising out of his wilful destruction of living gametes on November 13, 2022.

The facts here are not in dispute. To clarify the import of this decision and make its consequences unambiguous, we set out here undisputed language from definitions from federal government authorities, quotations from Texas statutes, federal and Texas Constitutional principles, and quotes and holdings from the Supreme Court of Alabama.

This court wants to be certain there is no confusion about the extent of our holdings in this case, and therefore will quote verbatim key elements of our decision. 

The federal “National Human Genome Research Institute, has provided this definition of a “gamete:”

A gamete is a reproductive cell of an animal or plant. In animals, female gametes are called ova or egg cells, and male gametes are called sperm. Ova and sperm are haploid cells, with each cell carrying only one copy of each chromosome. During fertilization, a sperm and ovum unite to form a new diploid organism.

The Texas  Child Protection Act provides;

“Wilful injury to a child shall bear the same criminal and civil consequences as wilful injury to any other person in the state.“  

Article III of our State Constitution, promulgated immediately subsequent to Dobbs v Jackson mandates "The Sanctity of Unborn Life.”

At issue in the case before us today is the finite definition of “unborn" life. Absent precedent in Texas jurisprudence, we take guidance from the Alabama state Supreme Court decision, Page v, Center of Reproductive Medicine, 

That Court decided the question of whether the statutory phrase "unborn child" included a female gamete that had been mixed in a laboratory Petri dish with a male gamete, before being reinserted into a laboratory freezer. The intention was later to remove the now-fertilized gamete from the freezer and insert it into the uterus — a process known as IVF, i.e., “In vitro fertilization.”

We are especially persuaded by the reasoning that led to the Alabama court’s conclusion that a frozen fertilized gamete was indeed an “unborn child.” The court noted:

"Man is created in God's image" and "man's creation in God's image is the basis of the general prohibition on the intentional taking of human life"....”Therefore , so that God could eternally dwell and abide with man, he willed him to be in some manner similar to him, to bear his image.” (emphasis supplied.)

The Alabama court reasoned:

“In summary, the theologically based view of the sanctity of life adopted by the People of Alabama encompasses the following : (1) God made every person in His image; (2) each person therefore has a value that far exceeds the ability of human beings to calculate; and (3) human life cannot be wrongfully destroyed without incurring the wrath of a holy God, who views the destruction of His image as an affront to Himself. Section 36.06 recognizes that this is true of unborn human life no less than it is of all other human life, that even before birth all human beings bear the image of god, and their lives cannot be destroyed without effacing his glory.

In short,"all men… are endowed with life by their creator. All human beings bear God’s image.”

Applying these principles, it becomes easy to see the Alabama court was correct. Indeed, its reasoning and conclusion leads inevitably to the conclusion in this case:

The Page decision, along with the 6–3 decision of the United States Supreme Court in Dobbs, and our recent Constitutional amendment, leave no doubt;  the word "child “ in our state legal code includes unborn children.

Two inviolate principles result from this decision:

 

1. In this state, all statutory references to "child" include unborn children, whether gametes in a laboratory or in a uterus.

2. If all human beings are endowed with life by the creator, and they all bear God's image, then that must be true of each of the two elements that physically create human life, whether in the uterus or the Petri dish. Each bear's God’s image, i,e., the female gamete bears god’s image, as does the male gamete, and we are required by our federal Constitution’s 14th amendment to provide equal protection to both.

Once those principles are established, the conclusion of this case becomes obvious: 

 The trial record shows that the  24-yr-old defendant was observed watching a television show that obviously aroused his erotic impulses. The defendant does not deny what happened next: He masturbated into a tissue that he ultimately flushed down the toilet. His semen was every bit as important to the creation of God's image as the female egg. His gametes included living cells, observable under a microscope swimming about. Each of the destroyed gametes included a full copy of a set of chromosomes, that, when united with a female set of chromosomes, whether in utero or in a laboratory test tube) would have dictated the sex, skin color, eye color, and thousands of the characteristics that make up God’s image. This defendant’s semen was a key ingredient to that image, and was every bit of a determinant of the characteristics of a resulting fertilized egg as was the female gamete. Accordingly it follows, that the destruction of defendant’s semen was as violative of God's will as the destruction of a fertilized or unfertilized female gamete. 

Conclusion:

This court sees neither logical nor religious distinction between the role of a male gamete or a female gamage, either before or after they come in contact with one another, or whether the contact occurs in a uterus or a test tube. 

The defendant is to be held without bail, and the trial judge is to set a date for sentencing.

Thomas, J, concurring:

The Issue of contraception was not directly involved in the facts of this case, and therefore the court did not deal with it in its opinion. But this court has made eminently plain that it ''wants to be certain there is no confusion about the extent of our holdings in this case.” and I respectfully submit that our holding today that wilful destruction of a male (or female) gamete violates the laws of the state of Texas has an undeniable effect on virtually every form of contraception as well as on numerous forms of sexual activity. 

I suggest Dobbs has cleared the way for each state to make its own rules on this subject matter.

Forewarned is forearmed.

A bientot!

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BONE SPURS

If you want a measure of sanity, or at least good judgment, take a look at this scenario:

An otherwise healthy young man beat the draft by getting a letter from his father's tenant, saying the playboy had "bone spurs on his heels,” and was therefore ineligible for the draft, saving our hero from military service during the Vietnam War. No records have ever been found substantiating that physical condition – – beyond records showing that Donald Trump's father was the landlord of the podiatrist who wrote the letter to the draft board certifying the alleged physical infirmity of the landlord’s son.  Oh yeah, there is much evidence showing the podiatrist enjoyed a preferred monthly rental for his offices.

One would think that a sensible, sane, logical person who enjoyed the favor of evading the draft, while others were being killed in service of their country, would not make frequent negative references to those who did serve their country, basically protecting the draft-dodger’s ass.

If that be the test of sanity and sensibility, then Donald Trump certainly fails it. He has on several occasions, mocked those who have served their country, and at a great personal cost. Even while serving as Commander-in-Chief of the United States military, President Trump, mocked anyone fool enough to wear a United States military uniform.

 (Warning, I am not objective on this issue. I am proud of the framed document on my wall, certifying that Sergeant E-5 Martin London has honorably completed his assigned military obligations to his country.)

Recall, please, that on a trip to France, President Trump canceled a scheduled visit to an American military cemetery because his helicopter could not fly in the rain and the Secret Service wouldn't take him by automobile. Both statements were lies. Four people who were involved in the conversations that day said the truth was Trump feared his hair would become disheveled in the rain, and he did not believe it important to honor American war dead: he is reported to have said, ”Why should I go to that cemetery? It's filled with losers and suckers.”

He mocked John McCain’s military service and the years he spent in North Vietnam’s prison camps by saying "I prefer fliers who do not get captured.”

And now he has mocked his political adversary, Nikki Haley, by suggesting her husband, has left her, when, in fact, he is a Major in the United States Army serving a tour of duty in Africa. (Apparently, Major Haley lacks bone spurs in his heels.)

When you add this to his most recent statement inviting Putin to attack NATO countries that do not spend enough money on their military establishments, you come to the conclusion that the man is borderline nuts. Scary, but nuts.

It is ironical that so much of Trump's support comes from militia types, a high percentage of whom are military veterans. What is going on here? The Commander-in-Chief mocking his own troops, especially those who made the ultimate sacrifice? Who is crazy? Trump, or the MAGAS who support him– or both? I vote for the latter.

Whatever a psychologist might find to be the explanation for this twisted personality, there can be no doubt that even if Trump doesn't win the election, he will still get millions of votes. This is Jonestown expanded to a national level.

And yet, this psycho has not only recruited a large band of lawyers, followers, and assorted thugs to be his loyal followers, he has flummoxed our court system so effectively that Article III of our Constitution is virtually non-functional in the face of this man's 91 counts of criminality, and a judicial finding of insurrection.

All of the above does not speak highly of the Democratic Party. The notion that Trump remains a viable candidate to be a free man, no less the President of the United States, is an indictment of the party’s incompetence and calls for dramatic action.

 I wish I knew exactly what we should do, but I don't. If there is no one in the Democratic Party with more knowledge and experience than I, then surely we are up shit’s creek. 

There are, however, two areas I see as becoming more and more obvious:

First, the situation at our southern border is a disgrace, and the Republicans have used it to its maximum potential— especially the Governor of Texas who has now shipped tens of thousands of migrants to the streets of New York, Chicago, Denver, and other Democratic strongholds. The tactic is destroying state and city budgets and enraging municipal voters. I know the immigration laws are complicated and have been a subject of political discussion for a long time. Nevertheless, the bottom line is Biden is in charge, and he owns this problem and if he doesn’t do something, it may prove to be the downfall of his party, not to mention the election of a dishonest, borderline insane autocrat who threatens to end our democracy, the Constitution be damned.

Second, though we don't like to face it, is Biden too old for this job? For one thing, what are the odds of his making it through (with all of his faculties) to January, 2028?  My guess is no better than 50-50. I hope I am wrong.

Is there nobody in the Democratic Party who can figure this out before it's too late? 

A bientot.

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WELCOME, WHOEVER YOU ARE AND HOWEVER YOU GOT HERE1

The economy is up, inflation is receding, wages are rising, unemployment is at the lowest level ever, Biden hasn't tripped going up the steps in months, so what's left for the Republicans to campaign about? Immigration, that’s what.

Until this past weekend, I regarded the issue as bullshit. Republican and Democratic Congresses have been struggling with the immigration issue for years, maybe even decades, But things are different today. Not only has immigration volume increased, but the people coming across the border are different. 

Sunday night, a segment on ”60 minutes” was an eye-opener. Film showed immigrants seeking asylum sneaking into the United States through a well-used hole in the border fence. And these were not entirely South Americans who had struggled across dangerous jungle paths with a small bundle on their backs, but now included many well-to-do Chinese with rolling luggage who flew from China to Mexico, then took an Uber to the point of illegal entry. (The location of the well-used hole in the fence was posted on their mobile phones.)

According to the CBS estimate, up to 25% of the people who ducked through the fence hole were Chinese. Some indicated their total expense for the trip to that hole in the wall was $14,000!

The Immigrants poured in without challenge. A uniformed and armed U.S. Border Control officer stood by and monitored the process.  When asked why the government did not fix the hole in the fence, he replied, "we don't have the money.“ (If that were true, Biden should write a personal check, non?  Or, was the border guard a secret MAGA adherent? I doubt it.)

The illegal entrants were lined up, filed into passenger vans, asked some preliminary questions, given a date for their immigration hearing, and then released. There is no evidence that anyone tracked where they went, and there was no evidence as to what percentage of such aslyum-seekers actually show up months or years later at their scheduled hearings before immigration judges. 

The CBS reporter’s questions, on film, produced responses that made it eminently plain that many of the illegal entrants had no legitimate claim to asylum status based on a need for humanitarian protection. Those who said they were coming here because "the economy was better" should, IMHO, have been turned back instantly, or at least incarcerated until their hearings. The system was designed to accommodate people whose lives were in danger, not those who wanted a better job. And as to the Chinese, what to do with those rejected at their hearings given the fact they cannot be deported back to China because China will not accept them?

There is, of course, a legitimate way to seek asylum in the United States. There are two points of entry where an asylum claimant needs to go. However, an appointment is required, and that is available only via computer. But the government URL is spotty, and even if one manages to acquire a connection, the wait for an appointment is measured in months.

We should be clear: the Senate was, until Trump interfered, prepared to vote on a bipartisan immigration bill that presumably would fix some of the defects in current immigration procedure. But the Republican Speaker of the House has made plain the bill is dead on arrival. Why? The House rejects it because Republicans have stated publicly the passage of any bill will be another victory for Biden, and that is not acceptable to the Trumpers in an election year. Now that’s patriotism. 

Shame on Congress, and shame on us for electing them. The system is broken, and the electorate needs to install a Congress devoted to improving our democracy, instead of improving the Republicans' ability to dismantle it.

Whew! I'm sure glad the Kelce/Swift psy-op developed by the Biden CIA will produce a Kansas City victory in the Super Bowl and enough of Swifty's 11-year-old voters to defeat Trump in November. Otherwise we’d be in deep shit,

A bientot.

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