Cal Wins! Almost There...

Judge Barbara Miller finally issued her ruling yesterday, and the ruling was good. Judge Miller ruled in favor of the University in virtually all the issues, and awarded 85% of the University’s legal costs to the University. Further, she directed that a third of the costs are to be paid by each of the three plaintiffs: The City of Berkeley, The Panoramic Hills Neighborhood Association and the California Oak Foundation.

In regards to the ever so burdensome injunction preventing the actual construction and the booting of the tree sitters, Miller has ruled that the injunction will be lifted in seven days to allow for an appeal to be filed.

The one factor that prevents a mass cartwheeling episode from joyous Cal fans down Bancroft Avenue is the issue as to whether the plaintiffs plan on appealing the case. This is where it gets a bit more confusing for me, although nearly everything I’m reading appears to indicate that an appeal would be unlikely to prevent building of the facility by summer’s end.

“If the petitioners decide to appeal, they will have the burden of proving that Miller's ruling--which comes after she issued a 129-page preliminary ruling last month--is faulty. Even if petitioners decide to pursue an appeal, the university will be able to commence construction during an appeals process if the three-judge appeals panel does not grant another injunction.” (Daily Cal)

Heck, even Ken Crawford over at Excuse Me For My Voice who has been reservedly (and understandably) pessimistic about the trial thus far is shooting off exclamation points is confident that the appeals will fail.

In the end, it may come down to whether or not the City of Berkeley decides to appeal the case, which they will decide on in a meeting Thursday evening. Apparently, there is an automatic injunction of 20 days after an appeal is filed, but considering how unlikely it is that the plaintiffs will be able to find an appellate judge who will grant them a further injunction, August 18^th might be the day to show up at the grove with some lawn chairs and popcorn. Or perhaps some chainsaws.

California Golden Bear Football News has five different stories up covering the ruling, so you can go there to browse through those to get a better understanding of what the deal is.