Ninth Circuit Judge Pushes ‘Bloodthirsty Originalism’ Embrace

A prominent conservative appeals judge made the case for his brand of “bloodthirsty originalism” and said other lower court jurists should overturn previous decisions that don’t fit into that mold.

Patrick Bumatay of the US Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit told an audience at Case Western Reserve University’s law school in Cleveland on Wednesday that judges should be bolder in seeking to do away with certain case law from their circuits.

“I believe our fidelity to precedent cannot be blind,” Bumatay, who’s previously been mentioned as a US Supreme Court short lister, said. “Our duty is to apply ...