From Steinbuch v. Pulaski County Circuit Court, decided today by the Arkansas Supreme Court (note that the lead plaintiff is a professor at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock):
Judge Welch presided over a civil action involving whether licensed attorneys in Arkansas are "officers of the court" and thus authorized under Arkansas Code Annotated section 5-73-122(b) to carry firearms in courthouses. The plaintiffs were Arkansas attorneys. Their complaint sought a declaratory judgment and injunctive relief. The defendants—the Pulaski County Sheriff and the Pulaski County Judge—filed a motion to dismiss the complaint. Judge Welch granted the motion to dismiss. Judge Welch ruled not only that the plaintiffs were procedurally barred from bringing the action but also that "an interpretation of ACA § 5-73-122 as suggested by the Plaintiff, [would] be [u]nconstitutional." Judge Welch also concluded that the "Plaintiff's [a]rgument fails, as it is founded upon a flawed premise that mis-reads the plain meaning of ACA § 5-73-122."
The plaintiffs appealed from the dismissal order. The appeal brought the interpretation of section 5-73-122 before this court. We affirmed in part and reversed and remanded in part. We held the statute's use of "officers of the court" included attorneys and that the statute allows them to possess handguns in courthouses. We therefore concluded that "the circuit court erred when it denied … plaintiffs' petition for a declaratory judgment." The charge on remand was not complex—Judge Welch was instructed to "enter an order consistent with this opinion."
Upon remand, Judge Welch entered a "Temporary Order on Lawyer/Officer-of-the-Court Carry, Partial Stay, Notice of Hearing, and Order of Partial Dismissal." The following includes some relevant excerpts from his order:
The Opinion [referring to this court's Corbitt decision] limits the Supreme Court's Superintending Authority over courts under Amendment 80. It also creates a new class of unlicensed, heretofore untrained, armed lawyers in courthouses of the State, in apparent conflict with the myriad of legislative enactments promoting carry permits….
The "Lawyer/Officer-of-the court Carry" Opinion ("LOCO," hereafter) ….
"Stakeholders" (In addition to the Sheriff, and the other parties), including Police Chiefs, and District Court Representatives will be invited to attend and submit input, on application, as Amici. The Court anticipates more than one hearing may be necessary to implement the vision of the Supreme Court….
IT IS ORDERED that PENDING THE HEARING, further implementation of "The Lawyer/Officer-of-the court Carry" Opinion in this case SHALL BE STAYED except as concerns the FIRST FLOOR of the Pulaski County Courthouse ….
Judge Welch proceeded to enter various additional stays of this court's opinion pending a hearing scheduled in August 2024…. [W]e issued notice to Judge Welch that his order may have violated the Code of Judicial Conduct….
