soapbox

 interest of amicus.

Stewart was  the plaintiff in Stewart v Taylor which properly found Indiana's  disclaimer statute unconstitutional under McIntyre.  

So the instant case APF represents a challenge to the holding of Stewart.  

I was then the inept counsel in Majors v Abell, resulting in a loss, with a dubitante concurrence. The clerk of the Supeme Court correctly denied filing the petition for cert in Majors when it arrived on the 91st day. I had been in jail and spent my brief printing money on bail. Majors was cited by the court below (was it?). Majors has been cited x times. The dubitante opinion has been cited y times. 

I was co-counsel in Anonymous v Delaware. In that case, the court of chancery held that the statute was so obviously unconstitutional under McIntyre that there was no live case or controversy, and dismissed the suit. But Delaware now enforces the statute.

Currently  I am the GOP candidate for Marion County Clerk. Under IC 3-9-3-2.5, I can be put back in jail for my signs that say "Stewart for Clerk." I was tortured in jail and would prefer to avoid a recurrence. 

My friend Doug Gutsloe (sp?) now deceased was jailed for his political signs. My friend schaefer? in West Virginia was jailed overnight for an alleged disclaimer violation. My amicus helped get the charges dropped.  

Reagan Outdoor was a party in Reagan v Austin. The Court distinguished Reed's strict scrutiny, recognizing a historical exception for on and off premise sign regulation. (right?). This case presents another opportunity to apply Reed's strict scrutiny to political signs.  

 Right now this blog is what I have instead of a campaign website. 

I'm running a fairly relaxed campaign for Marion County Clerk - have yet to spend a first dollar. 

That makes possible asymetric strategies.  

My actual goals are somewhat modest. I hope to reprise Stewart v Taylor, and strike down Indiana's unconstitutional sign censorship again. 

I want Beech Grove to return the van it stole from me, or pay for a new one.  And I'm hoping to stop a $17 million roundabout boondoggle in Beech Grove. I hope to recruit someone to run against the Mayor next year. Running for county clerk might up my visibility for these projects. 

 A cert petition has been filed in Alaska Policy Forum yesterday, the last day to file it. I've read it once so far. I'm working on an amicus.  

 https://blackchronicle.com/midwest/missouri/missouri-leads-coalition-backing-indiana-voter-id-law/

 https://www.jdsupra.com/legalnews/political-activity-in-minnesota-new-4208273/

• The Asset: We deploy three unused, un-leased junior posters in Marion or Hendricks County for a 4-week cycle.
• The Valuation: We value the space at Reagan's actual, audit-proof remnant rate of $372 per board.
• The Math: 3 x $372 = $1,116. This keeps the in-kind donation 100% legal and strictly under Indiana's $2,000 corporate candidate cap [IC § 3-9-2-4].

• The Copy: The face of the billboard reads simply: "Stewart for Clerk".
• The Anonymity Hook: Under Stewart v. Taylor (1997), Indiana's mandatory political disclaimer law was struck down as unconstitutional. We put up the candidate name with zero disclaimers or tracking tags.
• The Self-Report Bait: Reagan intentionally logs and reports this $1,116 corporate in-kind donation on state compliance portals. This forces a public paper trail, completely neutralizing the need to wait for a "John Doe" rival to file an election complaint.

• The Action: Local zoning boards or inspectors will attempt to issue a citation or order the sign's removal, citing local off-premises sign restrictions.
• The Lawsuit: Reagan immediately files a Section 1983 federal civil rights lawsuit and an injunction under Indiana Article 1, Section 9.
• The Groundwork: Because this is a pure, documented, non-commercial political sign, it triggers strict scrutiny. It bypasses the weaker commercial rules from City of Austin v. Reagan (2022) and forces the city to defend censoring the First Amendment.

• The Funding Ask: Reagan's leadership takes the live Indiana pilot case straight to the Bradley Foundation in Milwaukee.
• The National Play: Reagan pitches Bradley to issue direct legal grants to the Institute for Justice (IJ) or the Pacific Legal Foundation to co-counsel the case and print a flotilla of supporting amicus briefs.
• The Corporate Payback: Once won, Reagan secures a national legal model to systematically dismantle local municipal zoning codes and timeline restrictions across every state they operate in.

1. On June 30, 2026, Defendant attempted to make a lawful public records request at the police records desk, wherein staff refused to provide more than five records, citing an unwritten "5 records per day" rule.
2. Upon Defendant requesting a copy of the explicit written policy authorizing said limitation, the clerk refused to produce any written policy or statutory basis for the restriction, displaying crossed arms and outward hostility.
3. The clerk further obstructed access by hostilely insisting that Defendant provide the date of birth of his attacker as a mandatory condition for the release of records, which was wholly unreasonable and served to deny Defendant his statutory right to public records and violate his protections under the Indiana Victims' Rights Constitutional Amendment.
4. The clerk completely refused to provide any records regarding the individual named Michelle, wrongfully using the arbitrary five-record cap as a shield to block critical evidence.
5. In direct retaliation for Defendant contesting these bad-faith barriers, staff实用ly summoned armed law enforcement officers to intimidate Defendant, actively violating his rights and forcing him to abandon his lawful pursuit of public records.
6. Defendant has since verified the target individual's full legal name and identifiers as Michelle M. Rhotan Russell, Date of Birth September 20, 1980.
7. The clerk's categorical refusal to provide any information on this specific individual under the guise of an uncodified numerical limit constitutes an absolute denial of public records and a direct obstruction of Defendant's ongoing defense.
8. The actual target individual and assailant is Dennis Dewight Washington Jr.
9. By hiding records concerning this specific target and demanding identifiers Defendant did not possess at the desk, the clerk actively protected an assailant while stripping Defendant of his constitutional right to be treated with fairness, dignity, and respect throughout the justice process.
10. In direct retaliation for Defendant contesting these bad-faith barriers, staff summoned armed law enforcement officers to the front counter to intimidate and harass Defendant.
11. These responding officers stood with crossed arms and an uncooperative posture, creating a hostile environment that forced Defendant to leave the building for his own physical safety without receiving his lawful records.
12. A law enforcement officer followed Defendant from the records counter up the elevator to the 15th Floor.
13. This persistent tailing constituted an ongoing act of official intimidation while Defendant was attempting to speak with Human Resources regarding the department's public records policies.
14. While on the 15th floor, an official asked Defendant why he wanted access to the 16th floor of the building.
15. This questioning demonstrated that Defendant was being monitored and tracked across different levels of the facility while trying to file his paperwork.
16. After being questioned, Defendant left the building and wandered the downtown area in an extremely distressed state of mind (a New York state of mind).
17. Defendant attempted to seek immediate assistance at the Office of the Public Access Counselor (PAC) to report the records obstruction, but found the office closed to walk-ins.
18. Finding the Public Access Counselor (PAC) office closed to walk-ins, Defendant scrawled a handwritten note and left it directly in the door to formally request an appointment.

• Diala Qasem (Legislative Director, Rep. Carson)
  diala.qasem@mail.house.gov
• Megan Sims (Chief of Staff, Rep. Carson)
  megan.sims@mail.house.gov
• Adrienne Castro (Legislative Director, Rep. Takano)
  adrienne.castro@mail.house.gov