[ACLU-NM] ACLU Sues Corrales Mayor for Silencing Citizen
Kimberly Lavender
aclunmpa at swcp.com
Mon Jun 14 15:13:08 MDT 2004
~ ACLU-NM NEWS RELEASE ~
For Immediate Release
June 14, 2004
Contact: Peter Simonson, ACLU-NM Executive Director, 266-4622
Hope Eckert, ACLU-NM Cooperating Attorney, 764-8587
ACLU Sues Corrales Mayor for Silencing Citizen
AlbuquerqueThe ACLU of New Mexico filed suit in federal court today against
Corrales Village Mayor Gary Kanin for allegedly violating the First
Amendment rights of Corrales resident, Steve Simmons. During an April 27th
Village Council meeting, Simmons attempted to read a prepared statement
criticizing Kanins decision to run for Sandoval County Commissioner and his
announcement that he would not relinquish his mayoral post if he were
elected to the commission. When Simmons was two sentences into the
statement, Kanin slammed his gavel and shouted for Simmons to stop. The
Mayor called for a uniformed police officer to escort Simmons from the
podium.
I was shocked, said Steve Simmons. I had watched other residents get up
and speak their minds for about a year without any problems. The Mayors
shouting caught me by surprise. I suspected that he couldnt silence me,
but I didnt want to confront the police officer.
It was the first time in my life that I had tried to address a council like
that. Many residents of Corrales are concerned about a possible conflict of
interest in the Mayor having these dual responsibilities.
ACLU-NM Executive Director Peter Simonson sent a letter to Mayor Kanin
calling upon him to make amends by issuing a public apology to Mr. Simmons
that recognizes his right to freedom of speech on matters of public concern,
and that reassures the citizens of Corrales that they will never again be so
silenced in a public forum. When that effort failed to produce a response,
ACLU-NM cooperating attorney Hope Eckert sent a second letter on Simmons
behalf, also to no avail.
All the Mayor needed to do was issue an apology and this controversy would
be resolved, said ACLU-NM Executive Director Peter Simonson. Now Corrales
will have to pay an attorney to defend the Mayor on an issue thats about as
clear cut as any recent civil rights case that weve litigated. I cant see
that Kanin has a leg to stand on.
Attorney Hope Eckert said, It is truly shocking in this day and age that a
public official would feel that he had the ability to silence a citizen for
raising issues of genuine public concern, and in a forum that was intended
to be open to the public. It may have been a relatively minor incident, but
we dont want other public officials in New Mexico modeling their behavior
on Mayor Kaninsespecially not in the current climate of national political
debate. Free speech will never be more important than in the months leading
up to the November elections.
Citing both free speech and equal protection violations under the U.S.
Constitution, the ACLU-NM lawsuit seeks nominal and punitive damages.
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