soapbox

https://www.fox4now.com/naples/florida-election-police-probe-misleading-texts-in-collier-county

typical tv journalism, only tells one side of the story, the government's side, and doesn't seem to have any way to contact the reporter, mamoud bennett.

there are two issues in the story, which is about texts without disclaimers.

i think texts are intrusive, and requiring the disclaimer might be reasonable. i do think that about phone calls. i do not text myself, and might not be up on the social norms of texting.

but the official goes on to complain about lack of disclaimers on  websites and mailers. she has packaged this stuff and sent it to the prosecutors. i would consider that state action. so it's criminal and tortious. 

of course the facts might not be as presented on tv, and to dig into this further i might write to the official and request a copy of the packet.

NAPLES, Fla. — Florida's election police are delving into allegations of misleading text messages sent to voters in Collier County, signaling an investigation into potential election crimes.

According to the Collier County Supervisor of Elections Office, numerous complaints have been lodged by voters who received messages falsely thanking them for requesting mail-in ballots.

These messages, however, did not originate from the county.

"We packaged everything we had – some complaints from voters, along with the actual text message and some other things we had received – and sent it to that office of elections crimes and security," stated Melissa Blazier, Supervisor of Elections for Collier County.

Collier County Supervisor of Elections
Rev Dr Martin Luther King Jr Building
3750 Enterprise Avenue
Naples, FL 34104

 Supervisor.Elections@CollierVotes.gov

"our mission: protecting the integrity of the election process" [by unlawfully censoring core political speech.] 

In accordance with F.S. 119.12, the Collier County Supervisor of Elections office is the custodian of their agency’s public records.

draft only:

softball letter

Dear Ms. Blazier,

 I read with interest the recent article on channel 4 by Mr. Bennett in which you said you have sent a packet of material to an election crimes prosecution unit. 

If it is possible, I would like to receive a copy of what was sent. If it can be sent by email, great.

If it can only be sent via snailmail, my address is

Robbin Stewart, esq. POB 29164 Cumberland IN 46229.

I am happy to pay any postage or copying fees. If these need to be prepaid let me know. While this is not a formal public records request under  FS 119.12, or a subpoena, I trust this letter should be enough.

I may have further comment after reviewing the packet. I do not want to assume that everything in a  media report is necessarily gospel truth, so at this stage I am researching the facts.

Thanks in advance, 

Robbin Stewart.

softball letter sent 10:22 am 2/24/24 copy to my lawyer.

hardball letter (do not send)

Dear Ms. Blazier,

 I am writing to you in your official and personal capacities. This letter is to inform you that you and your office must immediately cease and desist from any further harm to the integrity of the election process by attempting to compel the use of disclaimers in political communications such as websites or mailers. Doing so would be illegal and tortious in light of the controlling United States Supreme Court precedents which include 303 Creative LLC (2023), McIntyre v Ohio Elections Commission (1995) and Talley v California, see also Reno v ACLU. 

Additionally I would suggest that the disclaimer policy violates the Florida constitution, although the case law is less clear, e.g. Doe v Mortham. You have, I think, sworn to uphold the Florida constitution. 

I appreciate you giving me the opportunity to share this information with you. If it would be helpful, I can send you a box of 50 cases agreeing with my position, or I could just email you a table of the cases. None of these matter much anymore now that 303 LLC has ruled, but they go to show this is not something new, but has been the law since the civil rights movement of the 1960s.   

I have not yet retained local counsel in florida, so we are still in the preliminary discussion phase, but eventually if you resist compliance with what the supreme court has ordered, our response will include but not be limited to litigation. We would try to focus adverse publicity, file disciplinary complaints against attorneys, refer the matter for possible state or federal prosecution, neither of which i would expect to happen, look into any available remedies through a state ethics board or however Florida handles such things,  and generally raise hell. 

I recognize running elections is a complicated job, and generally commend you on a job well done. That would not excuse deliberate malfeasance when it comes to protecting core political speech. 

Please let me know within 10 days what your response is.  

[wait 24 hours to revise this draft. do not send.]

billing note 1.0 hours 9:30-10:30