ASUC Set For Judicial Council Suit Tonight

The ASUC Senate is set to hear the impeachment trial of Judicial Council Chair Sonya Banerjee tonight after charges were submitted at last Wednesday’s senate meeting.

The senate will take on a judicial role as it hears the case, which was brought forth by five senators at last week’s senate meeting.

The hearing will be chaired by ASUC Executive Vice President Vishal Gupta, who said the senate will hear the arguments in open session before deliberating in closed session and voting on the impeachment in open session.

Despite some concerns that Gupta should not act as chair of the meeting due to possible bias in the case, he said the senate will decide tonight whether or not he should step down from chairing the hearing.

“I personally don’t feel that I have any personal or financial interests in the outcome of this trial, but the senate has the ability to overrule my opinion on that,” he said.

The senate will essentially act as the judicial body of the ASUC in the trial, meaning they will have to abide by the Judicial Rules of Procedure in conducting the hearing, said Marisa Cuevas, the assistant chair of the council.

“It will be the same as our regular trials. It’s just that the senate is doing it instead of the Judicial Council,” Cuevas said.

Since the council is allowed to deliberate in closed session and the senate will be following the Judicial Council’s rules of procedure, Gupta said they have the right to deliberate on the impeachment in closed session.

But former Judicial Council Chair Robert Gregg said although the senate must follow the council’s procedure, it is technically still the senate and thus does not have the constitutional ability to deliberate in closed session on this issue.

“It’s a fine line but the senate is the senate and they’re still conducting the duties of the senate. They’re simply trading procedures with the council,” he said.

The deliberations for the last impeachment trial of justice Jessica Unterhalter in 2005 were conducted in closed session, although Gregg said he believed it was technically illegal.

Two-thirds of the senate—14 senators—must vote to remove Banerjee for her to be taken off the council.

If she is removed, there will be another opening on the council and a new chair will be elected within the body, Cuevas said.

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