ProgressOhio

Kent Officer Tickets Man For 'Impeach Bush' Sign

Kent - A soft-spoken teacher posted the words "Impeach Bush" in a public garden, and Kent police cast him as an outlaw.

Today Kevin Egler is fighting that in Kent Municipal Court, and the case is emerging as a free-speech issue of interest well beyond the boundaries of placid Portage County.

Police ticketed Egler for unlawfully advertising in a public place because he put up a free-standing sign near the intersection of Haymarket Parkway and Willow and Main streets.

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Egler said that when he was stopped in Kent, he asked the police officer how his sign differed from Realtors posting signs on public property saying "This way to the house for sale." He said the officer asked, "You don't know the difference?" but never explained what it might be.

Columbus attorney Bob Fitrakis, Egler's lawyer, said there is a difference: The real estate sign is commercial speech, and Egler's sign is political. Commercial messages do not have anywhere near the legal protections that political speech does, he said.

Fitrakis does extensive legal work on First Amendment issues and is the publisher of the nationally recognized online publication freepress.org. He said this is the first Ohio case of its kind that he has heard of, because most prosecutions for political signs occur when someone defaces a building with paint or graffiti, but not a free-standing, easily removable sign. Until now.

But Ohio politicians - including judges running for re-election - get a great deal of latitude when it comes to posting their campaign signs, and Fitrakis said he is not aware of any instance in which a mainstream politician has been hunted down and prosecuted for the act.

Who holds the police accountable when they place their (individual officers or departmentally sanctioned) politics first? 

Report out of Ohio: Sean Hannity, in Cincinnati for his "Freedom Concert," did some freeloading on the public dime with a chauffeured ride from a publicly funded law enforcement agency to a ritzy steakhouse luncheon date with former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani.

Can you imagine the reaction if New York City police gave Michael Moore a ride to a dinner with Hillary Clinton?

Last week in Upper Arlington  the police made a real show of their presence when The Iraq Summer Campaign went door to door asking people if they would like a " Support The Troops End The War" yard sign.  Apparently, the UA police thought this deserved 7 police cars (approximately one for each volunteer) patrolling the streets and following the volunteers.

UAPA Yard Sign Initiative Sets New Record

I remember when members of UA for Kerry (now Upper Arlington Progressive Action) were consistently harassed by the UA police during the '04 Presidential campaign. 

How do we make the police act on behalf of all citizens with equal treatment and without regard for political persuasions (both the police's politics and the citizens)?

How Do We Police The Police?