Victories for public forums

A handful of victories have been won by people who insist upon exercising their constitutionally protected human rights to free speech and to petition their government, in the presence of politically powerful bullies who would rather they stayed silent.

The ACLU has a few wins under its belt, link.

The victories are transitory. There is no reason to expect politicians and public servants who have lost in court, to modify their future behavior. No consequence falls upon pols and public servants who violate citizens rights; no fines levied on them personally, no jail time. They don't even have to say they're sorry.

Marty Esquivel is a lawyer; hell, he claims to be an "open government" lawyer. He knows the restraining order he served on me is illegal. He knows he has no authority to order the APS Police Department to enforce his illegal order, and it didn't stop him from doing it; it didn't even slow him down.

He knows his order banning me from participating in the upcoming school board forum won't stand up in court. If he could count on any court supporting his order, he would have gone there to get one. He didn't. He didn't because he knows no honest judge would stand behind him. And he did it anyway.

He did it anyway because he is unafraid of any consequences.

His outrageous and egregious abuse of power is not even going to be made public. His cronies at the Journal will see to that.

It's too bad that newspapers don't stand for re-election as newspapers of record. If they did, Kent Walz et al, would pay for betraying the trust of their readers.




photo Mark Bralley