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Jun

14

Ohio resident takes town to federal court for political yard sign restrictions


No, not me and not Pepper Pike. I’m holding out great hope and expectations that my city will do the right thing, which includes being logical, reasonable and respectful.

And please note, this is a non-partisan issue. The person involved here appears to be a McCain supporter and the case involves Coalition Opposed to Additional Spending and Taxes, or COAST, not a group endeared to liberal causes.

The Columbus Dispatch writes today about Harrison, Ohio:

Burns sued Harrison in U.S. District Court in Columbus on Monday, arguing that the city’s rules on political signs limit free speech. Those include the 30-day-rule and a 16-square-foot size limit. Temporary, nonpolitical signs can be up for any duration and be large as 50 square feet.

…

He and the Coalition Opposed to Additional Spending and Taxes, or COAST, have convinced nearly a dozen southern Ohio communities, including the city of Cincinnati, to repeal similar ordinances. Finney filed a similar lawsuit Wednesday against the city of Piqua, north of Dayton, charging that the city’s sign restrictions restrict free speech.

Here’s the real silliness re: why waste Harrison’s residents’ taxes, or Columbus residents or Pepper Pike’s:

In 2004, Dublin and Granville dropped time limits on political signs because they feared lawsuits. A year before that, Columbus agreed not to enforce rules on political yard signs after the Constitution Party of Ohio sued.

Columbus’ rules, which remain on the books, include fees and 60-day limits. City Attorney Richard C. Pfeiffer Jr. hopes the City Council will rescind the rules.

This year, the American Civil Liberties Union has sued or threatened to sue over sign ordinances in Pennsylvania and Virginia and is urging the communities of Silver Lake and Bath Township in northeastern Ohio to junk requiring a deposit of $5 per yard sign.

U.S. courts have repeatedly upheld the right of residents to display yard signs, most recently in U.S. District Court in Maryland.

“There’s no way the (Harrison) ordinance can survive,” said David A. Goldberger, professor of constitutional law at Ohio State University. He pointed to a 1994 U.S. Supreme Court ruling that the Missouri city of Ladue may not restrict noncommercial speech on yard signs more than commercial speech.

“This is really what the First Amendment is all about,” Goldberger said.

I really pray that the residents and elected officials in my town can come to an agreement to drop the one political yard sign per household restriction and not waste any more time or money or energy on this, given the track record in fighting for upholding this aspect of free speech.

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By Jill Miller Zimon at 2:10 pm June 14th, 2008 in Campaigning, Civil Rights, Courts, Debates, Elections, Government, Law, Ohio, Politics, Voting, WH2008 

Comments

7 Responses to “Ohio resident takes town to federal court for political yard sign restrictions”

  1. 1 Ben K on June 15th, 2008 2:02 pm

    I dont care if anyone puts 89 signs in their yard, I just dont want to see them laying around in December, half covered by snow.

  2. 2 Chuck Butcher on June 16th, 2008 3:58 am

    I sure can think of a lot of things more important for a town to do than interfere with my political speech…

  3. 3 Harold Thomas on June 17th, 2008 3:06 pm

    While I agree with Ben and Chuck, the real question for me is why this should be a Federal case? It is a violation of the Ohio Constitution (Article I, Section 11, which is similar to the First Amendment, but expands more on the definition of libel).

    It is indicative of how much our Constitutional system is out of whack when a case like this goes directly to Federal court. The system was designed to use the Federal courts only for matters outside the purview of the states, or when basic liberties were not upheld by State courts.

  4. 4 Jill Miller Zimon on June 18th, 2008 10:26 pm

    Ben – Agreed! :)

  5. 5 Jill Miller Zimon on June 18th, 2008 10:29 pm

    Chuck – that’s the whole point – my town DOES have better things to do than defend its interference in my free speech. I’m hoping to change that. :)

  6. 6 Jill Miller Zimon on June 18th, 2008 10:30 pm

    Hmm – that’s a good question, Harold I don’t know – forum shopping is still a time-honored practice. I don’t know enough about the case to say.

  7. 7 Change, one person at a time: Pepper Pike to change political yard sign ordinance | Writes Like She Talks on August 20th, 2008 11:14 pm

    [...] can read some of the backstory here, but the gist is that others have raised this issue in the past, with no luck. I began to lobby for [...]

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