Court Opinion

ID: 9616936
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-22 04:50:49.075266+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T18:04:03.827214
License: Public Domain

McGRAW, Justice,
concurring:
I concur with the dissent’s observation that the majority “opinion is no more illogical than the law it interprets.” The law of contempt is logical, and so is the majority opinion. Where the primary purpose of the exercise of contempt power is to provide a remedy to an injured party, the contempt is civil. Where the primary purpose of the exercise of contempt power is preservation of the authority and dignity of a court, the contempt is criminal. The dissent argues that the best indication of the purpose to be served by the imposition of a contempt sanction is not the sanction imposed, but the misconduct that triggered the sanction. The trial court, however, surely cognizant of the wisdom articulated in Cicero’s ancient admonition to “Noxiae poena par esto” or “Let the punishment match the offense,” De Legibus, III, 3, imposed a sanction commensurate with the perceived nature of the violation. The fine was payable to the State, not to Massey; the fine bore no relationship to any damages arguably suffered by Massey; and, the fine was based on the prohibition of a broad range of activities that affected Massey in varying degrees. The trial court’s actions indicate that its motivation was retaliation and not remediation. This exercise of raw judicial power without benefit of proper lawful safeguards was properly rejected by the majority.