Republic Judicial Crisis

The Republic Judicial Crisis occurred to the reign of Supreme Chancellor Millardo Kuat, in 905 ARR when, acting on the order of the Supreme Chancellor the Republic Military arrested two Justices of the Republic Supreme Court, including the Chief Justice. Some analysts classify this as the defining event of the contentious Executive Junta.

Background
Millardo Kuat assumed the Chancellorship after the resignation of Kelas Tarkin. Soon afterward Kuat began amassing political power within the Republic, controlling the Chancellorship, the directorship of the Republic Military, and four council seats. Concurrently the world of Rendili, politically aligned with Kuat, also gained power, controlling the Vice Chancellorship, and a Supreme Court Seat.

At the time the Supreme Court was chaired by Chief Justice Highbacca, and filled out by Justice Harrison Theodoric, who was also Vice Chair of the Senate, Justice Simon Cowell, Justice Lulz, and Justice Richard Nixon. However, Justices Nixon and Lulz where on extended leave, approved by Chief Justice Highbacca.

Immediately preceding this crisis the Supreme Court ordered a controversial deployment to Arkania.

The Arrests
On day 19 of Month 4 of 905 ARR the Republic military executed an arrest warrant issued by Justice Cowell and endorsed by the Supreme Chancellor, under orders from the Kuati Supreme Commander of the military entered Senate chambers to arrest Chief Justice Highbacca and Justice Theodoric. After a brief standoff between armed Republic soldiers and security personnel both individual surrendered themselves.

Following protests from the government of the Republic of Loronar, the Tapani Empire, and other worlds, Justice Theodoric was released from custody resumed his duties. He would play a significant role throughout this crisis, and his release headed off efforts to replace him as Vice Chair of the Senate.

The Early Crisis
Immediately following his release Justice Theodoric was involved in dialogue with Republic Military commanders, and the Judicial Department. This resulted in the resignation of several ranking offices and a division of the Judicial Department, with a large section refusing to cooperate with the directive of the Supreme Chancellor and Justice Cowell. Loronar emerged as the leading force in a small coalition opposed to the actions of the Supreme Chancellor, while the Supreme Chancellor embarked on a good will tour across the Republic.

While the Supreme Chancellor dedicated himself to denouncing Justice Highbacca and Loronar's actions on his tour, he was greeted with mixed feelings, dodging a bowl of urine on Denon, and an assassination attempt on Corellia. He was most successful in the Core, especially on Kuat. Conversely, Loronar's efforts enjoyed the most success in the Rim-ward regions, though there were exceptions in both cases.

The Later Crisis
The later crisis was characterized by the paralysis of the Supreme Court, with it quorum frozen due the imprisonment of the Chief Justice and the division of the active membership between Justice Theodoric and Justice Cowell. This period is sometimes referred to as the 'Court in Captivity'. During this period Supreme Chancellor Kuat was able to carryout internal reform without checks by the Supreme Court, resulting in the Creation of the Republic Ruling Council. This period would last until the resolution of the Trial of Chief Justice Highbacca, though it would thaw with the return of Justice Nixon.

The Trial of Justice Highbacca
After the arrest of Justice Highbacca, Supreme Chancellor Kuat attempted to immediately put Justice Highbacca on trial but was stalled when the Senate refused to allow him unilateral action. A motion to dismiss the chargers was, however, defeated, and the senate saw that court officers will elected to carry out justice, with Justice Cowell leading the prosecution, Justice Theodoric heading the Defense, and with Senator Laura Roslin from the Darpa Sector presiding.

The Charges
Three key charges were laid against Justice Highbacca:
 * 1) On that he had failed to conduct the necessary procedural roll calls of the court.
 * 2) That the above had been done to consolidate his power within the court.
 * 3) He has misappropriated the funding for the Judicial Department.

The Course of the Trial & Defense
The Trial began in late 905 ARR and continued until 908 ARR. The great bulk of the time was taken by the Prosecution presenting evidence and calling witnesses. The Prosecution outlined evidence in support of the charges and enumerated positions with consistent with them. The Defense ultimately rejected both the charges and the legal standing upon which they where based. Respectively, the Defense maintained that the burden of procedural upkeep had in been meet and that all the actions of Chief Justice Highbacca were within the measure of the law, additionally it maintained that the charges, warrant, and arrest had no legal standing as they had originated from an entity with no judicial standing.

Verdict
After three years of trial a jury was selected from the Senate, consisting of nine represented entities, including Loronar, Rendili, Tapani and Kuat. The decision was 6 to 2 for acquittal, Rendili and Kuat cast the only guilty votes, while Loronar nullified their vote, and all other jurors voted for acquittal.

Legacy
After the trial Justice Highbacca, who had already been removed from his Court Position, and remanded to House arrest, left Coruscant and entered retirement as a private citizen. Though he continues to enjoy celebrity status with the Tapani Cluster and elsewhere.

The trial was a defining ordeal for Harrison Theodoric, who died shortly after the completion of the trial.

Some analysts have opted that the acquittal was critical in bringing about the end of the Executive Junta, as Millardo Kuat who resign under increasing senatorial pressure in the months following the verdict.

To this date the trial of Highbacca is the only trial conducted in the Senate and maybe regarded as a precedent. It is also the longest trial to date and can be considered the defining event in recent judicial history. Off the figures involved in the trial, Laura Roslin is now a seated justice on Supreme Court, and while Harrison Theodoric is deceased, and Simon Cowell no longer leads the Rendili delegation, Justices from Rendili and Loronar still sit on the Court.