Gothard, a candidate for the Washington County Commission District 5 seat in the 2016 Washington County elections, claims the Town’s fire chief banned her ad from the 2016 Wausau Possum Festival program book.
by Kathy Foster
In the lawsuit paperwork the following claims are made:
- The Plaintiff was a candidate in the Dist. 5 Washington County Commission election.
- The Town of Wausau is within Washington County, Florida.
- Each year the Town holds it Annual Wausau Possum Festival.
- This is a huge event, drawing more than 20,000 people to the Town.
- The Wausau Fire Department, along with the Town, are in charge of holding this annual event.
- As part of the Festival, the Fire Department creates a program book wherein the public can purchase ad space.
- On May 16, 2016, the Plaintiff learned that the Fire Department was soliciting ads from politicians and political candidates within the community.
- That same day, Plaintiff went to the Fire Department and submitted her ad application and payment for $120.0 for submission in the program book.
- On May 24, 2016, the program book was submitted to Paul Goulding for printing.
- As of May 24, 2016, there were numerous politicians and political candidates who had not yet paid for their ad submissions including, but not limited to, Lora Bell, Greg Wilson, Glenn Hess, Tray Hawkins, Alan Bush and John Harmon.
- At least three ad submissions had not submitted payment by July 7, 2016.
- The Wausau Possum Festival Program Book had not even gone to print as of July 7, 2016.
- On July 11, 2017, Plaintiff received her returned check for her ad submission and her application.
- When Plaintiff inquired as to the reason her check was returned, she was informed that Chief Sam Rudd refused to allow her ad to be printed in his book.
- Plaintiff was the only District 5 candidate who was denied the ability to place an ad in the program book.
- Chief Rudd’s actions are a violation of Plaintiff’s First Amendment rights.
- There was no lawful basis forRuddd to ban Plaintiff’s ad.
- Plaintiff’s advertisement was for the purposes of political commentary and public information.
First Amendment Right’s claims are as follows:
- The First Amendment to the United States Constitution protects the “freedom of speech.” It is a fundamental principle of the First Amendment “that all persons have access to places where they can speak and listen, and then, after reflection, speak and listen once more.”
- Political advertisements are at the core of the First Amendment.
- The Town created a traditional public forum because it accepted submissions for the Possum Day book from the general public.
- The Town cannot discriminate against a single ad.
- The Town’s decision to reject Gothard’s political advertisement ut to allow other advertisements constitutes prohibited discrimination.
- Gothard’s sole ad submission for the Town’s Possum Day book is protected expressive speech under the First Amendment because it contained no profanities, no obscenities, no insulting or fighting words that would by thier very utterance inflict injury or incite an immediate breach of the peach
- Town and Rudd’s actions in concert with one another to ban Gothard’s ad from the Town’s Possum Day book violated Gothard’s First Amendment protections of Free Speech.
- By allowing some ads to be included in the Town’s Possum Day book, but prohibiting Gothard’s, the defenants have arbitrarily and without statutory or other authority, suppressed some of the most sacred forms of free speach – political speech.
According to the paperwork filed in connection with the lawsuit, Gothard is seeking compensatory damages and reasonable attorney’s fees, plus court costs.