Just two days after its creator Douglas Bruce was sentenced to jail time, the Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights faced its own rough day in court Wednesday as a lawsuit challenging its constitutionality was heard before a federal judge.

U.S. District Judge William Martinez — while not ruling Wednesday — disagreed with key arguments presented by Colorado Attorney General John Suthers’ office in its defense of TABOR. Martinez flatly opposed the notion that a century-old Oregon decision settled issues around the present-day case.

Legal observers had said the current lawsuit, Kerr vs. Colorado, was a long shot because of the Oregon ruling, but Martinez’s criticisms citing that case greatly undercut the state’s defense and opened the door for throwing out TABOR.

Bruce, of Colorado Springs, will begin his sentence in the Denver County Jail on Friday.

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Photo by

Bryan Oller