ACLU challenges W. Warwick political-sign rules
4:15 PM Thu, Oct 09, 2008 | Permalink
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The American Civil Liberties Union's Rhode Island affiliate filed a lawsuit today accusing the town of West Warwick of discriminatory enforcement of an ordinance that limits size of campaign signs. The ACLU announced in a news release that it filed the suit on behalf of Thomas K. Jones of West Warwick, who last month lost the District 27 House Republican primary. The suit contends the ordinance violates Jones' Freedom of Speech protections and that town officials have applied it against him in a discriminatory way. The Journal reported the disagreement concerns a number of four-by-eight-foot signs Jones put up that bore a message opposing the $150-million water park and resort planned for the West Warwick Business Park. Jones said he removed a number of signs from yards of supporters who said they received letters threatening them with fines for violating the sign ordinance. Jones argued the letter letters resulted from the the signs' content, not size. But town officials have denied that. The letters said the ordinance provides for no more than one political sign being posted on a residential lot and that it can measure no larger than 8 square feet. A violation can mean a $500 fine. -- projo.com staff writer Michael P. McKinney, with Journal archival reports 
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Okay, so he puts up signs that violate city ordinance regarding signs, okay, the people who let their property be used got letters warning them of fines, okay, and then he says it wasn't about the signs?
Let me go over this again, signs violate ordinance regarding sign size, people get letters regarding fines regarding city ordinance regarding sign size but the ACLU files suit?
Got it! Just the ACLU doing something to get donations from the oppressed that put up signs violating city ordinance regarding the violation of sign sizes.
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Beware anytime the ACLU gets involved. These left wing fruits will do anything to tear down our country, destroy capitalism, and remove God from our society.
They are a pathetic group, but they are also dangerous. Don't underestimate how far this radical group will go.
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The big issue here, which the journal fails to mention, is that there are at least 4 other candidates in West Warwick that have signs that are over the limit set in the ordinance who are not getting letters to take down the signs. Drive down Cowesett Ave or Legris Ave and you will see signs for multiple candidates that are too big. In addition, the ordinance allows yard signs that are larger for Real Estate and Home Improvement companies. The Supreme Court has had multiple rulings against ordinances that put more restriction on Political signs than on commercial signs. I have no problem with the building officials enforcing the signs if it is done for ALL political signs.
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The US Supreme Court has ruled that ANY ordinance regulating political signs is unconstitutional.
Who is the town's attorney?
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