Kris Kobach has been a part of many humiliating stories in Kansas over the last few years, but few may rank as personally embarrassing as being court ordered by a federal judge to complete an educational program on the basics of being an attorney.
From the Associated Press:
Former Kansas Secretary of State Kris Kobach has told a federal judge he’s completed extra legal education that she required of him as a sanction in a voting rights lawsuit.
Kobach filed documents Friday in federal court showing he finished a six-hour course called “Civil Trial: Everything You Need to Know” on Jan. 4. The course included one hour on ethics.
Kobach completed the course work, and I guess we can believe — though there is no report to confirm — that he passed the courses required.
Kobach’s performance in federal court was led to a contempt charge over troubles with evidence and, frankly, general ridiculous behavior. As reported in The Hill:
In the 118-page ruling, U.S. District Judge Julie Robinson wrote that the state’s requirement that voters show proof of citizenship during registration violated both the Constitution and the National Voter Registration Act.
Robinson struck down the stringent law, and ordered Kobach to take six additional hours of continuing legal education that “pertain to federal or Kansas civil rules of procedure or evidence.”
Robinson wrote that the law, championed by Kobach, prevented “tens of thousands of eligible citizens” from registering to vote before she issued a preliminary injunction, and that “the process of completing the registration process was burdensome for them.”
Kobach enters this year unelected, and while still an eligible citizen to vote, he is thankfully no longer in the position to threaten other’s voting rights.
Still, he can also add to his educational resume that he has taken “Civil Trial: Everything You Need to Know”, which thankfully doesn’t end with “for Dummies”.