The N.C. Court of Appeals ruled Tuesday that then-Gov. Mike Easley acted unconstitutionally in 2002 when he seized $80 million from the Highway Trust Fund to balance the budget.

The court's decision could restrict what steps governors can take during financial crises.

The majority of the three judge panel, Judge Robert N. Hunter Jr. and Judge Barbara Jackson, ruled that the state constitution does not give the governor authority to take money appropriated for one purpose -- road building, in this case -- and use it for another.  

Judge Linda McGee dissented, saying the majority's decision removes the governor's ability to act quickly in a crisis.

UPDATE: Gov. Beverly Perdue plans to appeal the decision to the N.C. Supreme Court, according to spokeswoman Chrissy Pearson.

A majority of state appellate judges are women.

After Cheri Beasley's win in November, eight of the 15 seats on the N.C. Court of Appeals are held by women. The court is the second-highest in the state after the Supreme Court.

Along with Beasley, the female judges are Linda Stephens, Linda McGee, Wanda Bryant, Ann Marie Calabria, Martha Geer, Barbara Jackson and Donna Stroud.

Although the posts are officially nonpartisan, Calabria, Jackson and Stroud are Republicans; the rest of the judges are Democrats. They are elected statewide.

Two other women, Jewel Ann Farlow and Kristin Ruth, lost campaigns in November.

State Supreme Court justices Robin Hudson, Patricia Timmons-Goodson and Sarah Parker previously served as judges on the Court of Appeals.

Correction: An earlier version of this post misstated Jackson's affiliation.