A case that could recalibrate what documents state legislators can keep secret was heard Tuesday in the Supreme Court of Virginia. Vesilind v. Virginia State Board of Elections is primarily a redistricting case, brought to challenge 11 General Assembly districts under the state constitution. But a side issue has gotten four state senators, and two former senators, held in contempt of court by a Richmond Circuit Court judge. That was the issue before the Supreme Court Tuesday: whether the Virginia Constitution allows state legislators to withhold emails and other documents, even when they’re subpoenaed in a lawsuit.
The arguments quickly became a complex discussion of legislative privilege, past court precedent and English common law, but Chief Justice Donald Lemons seemed skeptical of just how broadly the senators’ attorney seemed ready to stretch their privilege.
“The whole tenor of the arguments changed” when Lemons began peppering attorney Jason Torchinsky with questions, said Steven Emmert, an appeals attorney who is not involved in the case but sat through Tuesday’s arguments.
Full Article: Senators in contempt over secret emails get day before Supreme Court of Virginia – Daily Press.