David Sawyer (Michigan)
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David H. Sawyer was a judge on the Michigan Third District Court of Appeals. He was elected to the court in 1986.[1] He was re-elected in 2010 and again in 2016.[2][3] His term expired on January 1, 2023.
Education
Sawyer received his bachelor's degree from the University of Arizona and his J.D. from Valparaiso School of Law.[1]
Career
Sawyer was the Kent County Prosecuting Attorney and a criminal justice teacher at Grand Rapids Junior College before his election to the Third District Court of Appeals in 1986.[1]
Elections
2016
Sawyer filed to run for re-election in 2016.[4] He was unopposed.
Election results
November 8 general election
Incumbent David Sawyer ran unopposed in the general election for the Michigan Third District Court of Appeals, Sawyer's seat.
| Michigan Third District Court of Appeals, Sawyer's Seat, 2016 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Republican |  David Sawyer Incumbent (unopposed) |
100.00% | 578,634 | |
| Total Votes (88 of 83 counties: 100%) | 578,634 | |||
| Source: Michigan Secretary of State Official Results | ||||
2010
- Main article: Michigan judicial elections, 2010
Sawyer ran unopposed and was re-elected on November 2, 2010.[5]
Political affiliation and campaign contributions
Republican. Sawyer has contributed several times to the Republican Committee of Kent County.[6][7][8]
RMGN initiative
In 2008, Reform Michigan Government Now (RMGN) put forward a proposal to reduce the Michigan Court of Appeals from 28 to 21 judges, based on term expiration dates, which would have shifted the court's political power from the Republicans to the Democrats. However, the proposal failed. Had the proposal passed, the court's political makeup would have changed from 16 Republican judges and 12 Democratic judges to 10 Republican judges and 11 Democratic judges--thereby eliminating six Republican judges and one Democratic judge. The judges targeted by the RMGN proposal were: Pat Donofrio, Joel Hoekstra, Donald Owens, David Sawyer, William Whitbeck, Kurtis Wilder and Helene White--the only Democrat affected by these suggested removals.[9]
First Amendment ruling
The Michigan Court of Appeals threw out a law created in 1897 that says "anyone using 'indecent, immoral, obscene, vulgar or insulting language in the presence or hearing of any woman or child shall be guilty of a misdemeanor.'" Judges William Murphy, David Sawyer and Joel Hoekstra determined the law violated the First Amendment right to free speech--that it would be "difficult to conceive of a statute that would be more vague." According to the Freedom Forum, the court said the law was vague in what constituted vulgar language, and therefore would be an unreasonable expectation.[10]
Recent news
The link below is to the most recent stories in a Google news search for the terms Michigan Court of Appeals David Sawyer. These results are automatically generated from Google. Ballotpedia does not curate or endorse these articles.
See also
External links
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Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Biographies of the 3rd District Judges
- ↑ Michigan 2010 Unofficial General Election Results: Court of Appeals
- ↑ Michigan Constitution, Article VI, Section 23
- ↑ Michigan Secretary of State, "2016 Michigan Candidate Listing," accessed March 24, 2016
- ↑ Michigan 2010 candidate list
- ↑ Federal Election Commission, "Report: 25990593587," August 8, 2004
- ↑ Federal Election Commission, "Report: 26950057396," October 21, 2005
- ↑ Federal Election Commission, "Report: 26930076974," December 16, 2005
- ↑ Democrats will take over on Michigan Court of Appeals
- ↑ Cussing canoeist's conviction thrown out, along with 105-year-old law
Federal courts:
Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals • U.S. District Court: Eastern District of Michigan, Western District of Michigan • U.S. Bankruptcy Court: Eastern District of Michigan, Western District of Michigan
State courts:
Michigan Supreme Court • Michigan Court of Appeals • Michigan Circuit Court • Michigan District Courts • Michigan Probate Courts
State resources:
Courts in Michigan • Michigan judicial elections • Judicial selection in Michigan
