Idaho's top court to visit Wallace

WALLACE - The Idaho Supreme Court will be holding session at the Shoshone County Courthouse on Monday. The visit was orchestrated by John Magnuson and the Shoshone County Commissioners. "We thought that was a good idea," County Commissioner Jon Cantamessa said. "We wanted them to see a little flavor of the community."

WALLACE - The Idaho Supreme Court will be holding session at the Shoshone County Courthouse on Monday.

The visit was orchestrated by John Magnuson and the Shoshone County Commissioners.

"We thought that was a good idea," County Commissioner Jon Cantamessa said. "We wanted them to see a little flavor of the community."

The commissioners sent a letter in early December, he said, offering the county's facilities to the Supreme Court.

"Ours is one of the most beautiful courtrooms you've ever seen and we're just so proud of it," Shoshone County Clerk Peggy White said. "This is the heart of Idaho, as far as I'm concerned."

It was a little over a month later that the court responded, expressing appreciation for the invitation.

"This is going to be a great opportunity - Wallace has such a history," said Stephen W. Kenyon, clerk of the Supreme Court.

White said the Supreme Court visit will essentially kick-off the 1910 fire centennial celebration.

"It's kind of how this all came about," she said. "This is really a prestige event, it's really a great honor for them to come to Wallace."

Kenyon said there will be three hearings, run back-to-back, beginning at 8:50 a.m. before Justice Daniel Eismann, Justice Roger Burdick, Justice Jim Jones, Justice Warren Jones and Justice Joel Horton.

The process is very formal and rules-based, he said, which is much different than trials depicted on TV. Quite possibly the most simplistic way of explaining the purpose, Kenyon said, is that it's an instant replay of the case - here an attorney is trying to convince that there was a mistake made at the trial level to the Justices, who are well-versed on all the briefings and records.

Each side gets 30 minutes to state their case, he said, and Justices may interrupt at any time.

"They can be very, very interesting," Kenyon said of the Supreme Court sessions, "peppering questions from all directions."

When the hearing is complete, he said, the Justices don't make a decision on the bench. There is no immediate resolution, taking on average one to two months for the final opinion.

Kenyon said the public is welcome and invited to sit in on Monday's sessions, and he will be available after to answer any questions one might have.

"We want to remove the mystery of the Supreme Court," he said.

The day should be fascinating and everyone is looking forward to the visit, Kenyon said.

"This will be the first time that in recent memory the Supreme Court has been to Wallace," he said. "We hope we don't go another 30 to 40 years without going again."