King Boyle Overturns a Congressional Law and Punishes the Public for the Government Breaking its own Rules.
We must have heard over 50 times recently on the news over the health care bill, that an executive order cannot change the law. This is supposed to be an obvious legal fact taught in middle schools when they first learn about the powers of the three branches of government. Moreover the judicial branch cannot overturn a congressional law either unless it is deemed an unconstitutional law. Thus it is dually ignorant and unconstitutional for the judicial branch to overturn a law by siting an executive order. But that is exactly what has happened to the Outer Banks, with their beaches being shut down.
Terrance Boyle the activist right wing judge that made the decision, has had more of his decisions reversed than any other judge. In fact more than 150 times! Judge Boyle's decisions have been repeatedly reversed for committing "plain error" and other fundamental legal mistakes. Here again, I believe we have a plain legal mistake. Judge do not remove or make laws they are supposed to interpret whether or not you break a law, that is all. The Judge recently reveal the degree of his ignorance in a hearing Friday 19 where he stated, "The people of Hatteras are complaining about something that doesn't even effect them." Wow. Sure closing a beach on an Island will have no economic impact or effect the culture of the people who live there. Lots of people go to the beach so they can stare at it and not use it. Lots of people drive from other states to almost see the ocean. What planet does Judge Boyle live on?
What is the punishment for breaking an executive order? Can the judicial branch use that to overturn a congressional law? They're not supposed to but they have.
The purpose of executive orders is to guide the enforcement of laws passed by the legislators. Their purpose is not to act as pretexts to overturn the laws that they are supposed to be guiding the enforcement of, yet that is what has happened. It’s ridiculous and unconstitutional.
The Cape Hatteras Recreational Seashore was created by congressional law in the 1930s. In the 1970s, an executive order was made about managing off road vehicle use in the park for environmental reasons.
The Park Service never created a management plan for ORVs despite the executive order which gave them 6 months to do so. As a result, Judge Boyle closed the parks completely to everyone in 2008. You can no longer go to the beach by ORV or even on foot. Why foot traffic was included in the banning of ORVs is a mystery.
How is a judge allowed to overturn congressional law by incorporating it into part of the punishment for the Park Service not complying with an executive order? The Order was about managing ORV use not banning it outright much less banning people entirely, including pedestrians!
Punishments for breaking laws are not supposed to incorporate overturning other laws. Otherwise this is just a way for the judicial branch to overturn laws on behalf of interest groups.
You wouldn't close an entire road just because someone was speeding on it. If someone steals a bike, you don't ban the riding of bikes, to prevent the stealing of them.
But now, because the order was broken, instead of fining the Park Service, they have punished the public by closing the park until the NPS develops a plan for ORVs. The NPS has been deliberating on this plan for two years and still has not made a plan, Yet the NPS is not punished by this. The NPS is being paid to police the park closure and murder animals!! Finally now that a federal bill is pressuring them that aims to open the parks back how they were, the NPS is close to a proposal. And so far its five bad choices that about as bad as choosing which finger to cut off your hand.
Laws are made by elected officials for a reason. They can be held accountable when they make bad laws. These elected officials are also supposed to be representatives of the people who voted for them. Also, laws are made by a body of people, not one person, in order to divide the power and not leave it all up to the whims of one person. That is one of the core reasons why we do not allow a monarch to just decree whatever he wants with no course to reverse it. However, this is precisely what has happened here at Cape Hatteras Recreational Seashore: Judge (King) Boyle has overturned a congressional law and has punished the public for the government breaking its own rules.
There is something wrong in North Carolina and America when the entire body of elected officials from the Local County Commission to the House Representative and both Senators all agree on open beaches and yet they are powerless to do anything about it. We now have to get another bill passed through the whole congress to basically re-enforce the original bill that had already been passed creating the parks because of some Monarch-like judge (Boyle) who decided that he in the judicial branch could ignore a congressional law and order things be done his way, based on a government organization not following its own rules.
Why are the people being punished for the National Park Service’s inaction? Why in the moratorium of the NPS finally planning something they were supposed to do 39 years ago, is the public punished for it and losing tens of millions of dollars in income from tourism?
Cape Hatteras and Ocracoke should sue the National Park Service in a class action law suit because the negligence of the NPS has been the sole cause of the economic demise of both Cape Hatteras and Ocracoke Island. And the judge should be impeached for overturning a congressional law based on the breach of an executive order.
I can't take my son to the beach. An egg has more rights in a recreational park than a person. That's wrong. It's commonsense. And it has to change.
Support S1557 and re-open beaches that are supposed to already be open as that is what the federal government promised us when they were created.
-Ryan Dawson
