soapbox

 letter somewhat as sent:

roughest draft of an open letter to the office of the secretary of state of minnesota:

I am writing with regard to press reports that a political candidate Richard Glasgow, a mayor of Lakeland, was fined $250 for signs promoting his candidacy. 

I cannot allow this. His signs are protected speech under the First Amendment, the Minnesota Constitution, and Minnesota statutes. These sign censorship statutes are a legacy of the Jim Crow era, designed to suppress the speech of Negroes and women.

See Talley v California (1960) and Estate of McIntyre v Ohio Elections Comission (1995), holding that such disclaimer statutes are unconstitutional.

In Stewart v Taylor (S D Ind. 1997) I was able to get Indiana's sign censorship statute declared unconstitutional by pointing to the McIntyre decision. I got $7,000 from the settlement of that case, and have made it a point to monitor similar occurrences of misconduct by public officials.

The signs are protected speech under Minnesota chapter  554, which provides for court costs, legal fees, ordinary and punitive damages. 

Although they are not my signs, I have standing and a live controversy to challenge this unlawful enforcement action because it chills my speech. I have a web site where I endorse the candidate with no disclaimer, and intend to continue to engage in such speech. https://ballots.blogspot.com/2020/09/this-blog-endorses-mayor-richard.html.

https://ballots.blogspot.com/2020/09/it-was-illegal-for-lakeland-mayor.html

In addition to being unlawful and tortious, it is unethical for any attorney to participate in this deprivation of civil rights, and might result in a disciplinary complaint if this letter is willfully disregarded. 

I need you to cease and desist from any further attempt to enforce the void unconstitutional sign censorship rules. I need to you to revise your web page to remove any threat of enforcement of this illegal policy, and to let me know when you have done so. I need you to return the $250 fine if it has been collected, even if the candidate didn't mind paying it. Also if there have been any other fines assessed under the policy, return those. Talley and Mcintyre are quite clear about what the law is and what your profssional obligations are, but if there is any question, feel free to obtain a formal opinion from the Minnesota Attorney General. 

Sincerely, Robbin Stewart. gtbear@gmail.com http://ballots.blogspot.com.