On The Front Lines
Rutherford Institute Sues Town Over First Amendment Violation After Homeowners Were Ordered to Remove Thomas Jefferson Sign From Yard
HUMBOLDT, Iowa--Attorneys for The Rutherford Institute have filed a First Amendment lawsuit on behalf of an Iowa couple ordered to remove a sign from their front yard about the dangers of government. The complaint alleges that the City of Humboldt, Iowa, violated Bradley and April Blair's right to free speech and freedom of expression when city officials demanded that the couple remove from their yard a sign, on which they had inscribed a quote commonly attributed to Thomas Jefferson, or face fines of up to $1,000 a day. Institute attorneys are asking the District Court for Humboldt County to declare unconstitutional both the city's sign ordinance, which prohibits most signs that don't advertise the sale or lease of a property, and its subsequent moratorium on all signs.
The complaint in Blair v. City of Humboldt is available here.
"Thomas Jefferson, one of the architects of the Constitution, understood the dangers government poses to freedom. That's why he cautioned Americans not to trust government officials but to 'bind them down from mischief with the chains of the Constitution,'" said John W. Whitehead, president of The Rutherford Institute. "In light of their recent actions, it seems evident that Humboldt officials would benefit from reading the Constitution, particularly the First Amendment, which clearly protects the Blairs' right to express their views about government on a yard sign."
In June 2010, Bradley and April Blair posted a sign in their front yard, about twenty square feet in size, on which they had inscribed a quote commonly attributed to Thomas Jefferson regarding the dangers of government power and the importance of the rule of law. "The enemies of the people are criminals and government," proclaimed the sign, "so let us tie the second down with the chains of the Constitution so the second won't become the legalized version of the first."
In October 2010, after the city allegedly received an anonymous complaint about the sign, city officials informed the Blairs that their sign was in violation of the Municipal Code, which prohibits most signs that don't advertise the sale or lease of a property. The Blairs were also warned that they could face an initial fine of $750, plus $1,000 more for every day the sign remained up. The city has since imposed a moratorium on all new signs.
In filing suit against the City of Humboldt, Rutherford Institute attorneys are challenging both the ordinance and the subsequent moratorium on First Amendment grounds, alleging that the city is violating its citizens' rights to freedom of speech, freedom of expression and freedom of the press.
