I greatly appreciate the insults. My son was standing over my shoulder when I pulled the thread up. As to some of the other comments, as I've indicated previously, I am limited in what I role I can play.
Here is where it stands: 1) Gilbert filed his complaint. 2) The Judge dismissed his complaint as inadequate for failure to provide supportive facts and gave Gilbert one last chance to plead sufficient facts. 3) Gilbert today filed an amended complaint without any facts whatsoever (who specifically did what, where and when).
Unfortunately, Gilbert has created a procedural box. Amendments to a complaint are barred after Defendants answer unless the Court gives leave. Here, the Court granted leave but stated explicitly this (what was filed today) was the last chance.
A complaint is a critical procedural requirement to proceed with a lawsuit. Courts don't just pontificate on what the law should be (ie. whether or not the Voting Rights Act applies to the RNC Convention). They look to specific wrongdoing, supported by specific factual circumstances, that violates the law and which are susceptible to an appropriate remedy. Gilbert's complaint fails to meet the first threshold (specific wrongdoing) and merely makes an argument for what the law should be (that's for Congress, not a Judge).
Part of the reason for the requirement of a valid complaint is that every Defendant is entitled to know specifically what the Plaintiff alleges they have done. For instance, the Republican Party of Kansas is entitled to know what specific wrongs it has committed. What happened in Arizona or Massachusetts is irrelevant. There has to be specific acts committed by each Defendant.
The Judge has already stated that no further amendments will be permitted in extremely directly language. Additional filings will be disregarded, whether by Gilbert or third parties. The problem is the complaint itself, not attachments to it and there is now no ability to fix the underlying document.
As to the use of an amicus brief, those require either A) Permission from both parties or B) Leave from the Court. But, a brief is not the complaint itself. The complaint outlines the nature of the dispute. A brief merely makes arguments on the law. An amicus brief is irrelevant because the issue is not legal argument but factual sufficiency.
I'm sorry I'm such a downer. I've been watching this for a few weeks and thought I'd share my observations. Apparently some would prefer that I don't.
