08/09/2007: "SJC & Gaylord Still Subject Of Civil Rights Lawsuit"

The San Juan County Council and Prosecutor Gaylord received another set back this week, when the Washington Supreme Court rejected their request for a reconsideration of their unanimous April ruling in the San Juan County v. No New Gas Tax law suit.

San Juan County had argued before the Court that media commentary does not qualify as an “in-kind” contribution, and therefore must be reported to the state under campaign finance laws. They lost the case .

Despite these landmark victories for free speech and freedom of the press, the local governments that originally sued Yes912.com, for failing to report supposed “in-kind contributions” from talk radio hosts, asked the Supreme Court to reconsider the ruling in May. And now they have lost again.

With the latest rejection, the Court's 9-0 opinion stands, and San Juan County will now find itself back in trial court, as the other side pursues it’s constitutional counterclaims against San Juan, Seattle, Kent, and Auburn.

Gaylord and the other prosecutors argued that allowing the media to comment on issues of public importance was a “significant disclosure loophole” in Washington law. But the court denied this motion in a one-sentence order. The ruling clears the way for Yes912.com’s case to return to the trial court, where it will have an opportunity to vindicate its First Amendment rights.

In its April ruling, the state’s high court reinstated the campaign’s civil rights complaint against the municipalities, which argued that the municipalities’ prosecution of the campaign for its exercise of free speech was unconstitutional.

The counter suit that SJC will now once again face, is a civil rights complaint. “This was a blatant attempt by local governments to find some other way to regulate media commentary they do not like,” said Bill Maurer, the executive director of the Institute for Justice Washington Chapter, who argued the case for Yes912.com. “But as the Washington Supreme Court already ruled, campaign finance laws do not give government the power to censor the press.”

Maurer told The Island Guardian that “the main goals of the counter suit will be to hold the people behind this constitutional violation fully accountable.” He added that “This has been largely a San Juan County action, the other three plaintiff did not even show up in court; only Gaylord did”.

A question this has raised is, how much has this cost San Juan County in their own legal fees, and/or time, that was taken away from the prosecutor’s office that could have been spent dealing with direct County business. And then there is the big question:

Since federal civil right cases allow prevailing parties to go after legal fees and costs, and Washington law also permits awarding of legal fees in cases of a wrongful injunction action -which applies in this case- will the County now end up having to pay some amount to Yes912.com ?

This is a civil rights complaint, so the Court may award legal fees and costs to the other side. If so, the decision by the former County Commissioners to allow Gaylord to go after Yes912.com -the supporters of the I-912 initiative to repeal the 2005 gas tax increase- may very well result in SJC being hit with some heavy costs.