The Hot Sheet

Fighting (in court) for the constitutional right to educate voters!

We’re still locked in a court battled with the Port Authority over their refusal to let us advertise ex-offender voting rights on buses. But the ACLU has our back, and we’re waiting for our jury trial to be scheduled to see if they think the Port Authority acted constitutionally by rejecting the ad.

Here’s a summary, taken from Judge McVerry’s opinion against partial summary judgment in our favor:

“Plaintiffs, Pittsburgh League of Young Voters Education Fund (“Fund”) and American Civil Liberties Foundation of Pennsylvania (“ACLU”), brought this lawsuit on December 8, 2006 by filing an amended complaint pursuant to 42 U.S. C. § 1983 alleging that defendants violated their rights under the First and Fourteenth Amendments to the United States Constitution by refusing to accept and display their proposed ex-offender voter-education advertisements.

Plaintiffs have filed the instant motion for partial summary judgment in which they contend that they are entitled to judgment as a matter of law on the issue of the defendants’ liability because 1) Port Authority designated its bus-advertising space as a public forum, 2) Port Authority acted unreasonably and committed viewpoint discrimination by refusing to run their advertisements despite having run similar advertisements in the past, and 3) Port Authority’s advertising policy is unconstitutionally vague.”

(Read the rest if you’d like…)

Tags: ACLU, advertising, allegheny county, American Civil Liberties Union, constitution, constitutional, court opinion, ex-offender, pa league of young voters, Pennsylvania, pittsburgh, Port Authority, rights, United States Constitution, Voting

The League of Young Voters Calls for a Better, not Cheaper Transit System

The League of Young Voters calls for Better not Cheaper Transit System

Pittsburgh, PA—This morning, at a pro-transit rally in Mellon Square, the League of Young Voters called for a the creation of a coalition of government, private business, public institutions and community groups to create a better solution to the transit crisis.
 

Khari Mosely, Director of the Pennsylvania League, said the both neither a state bailout nor a drastic reduction in services was the answer.  “We need to gather all the stakeholders together and find new solutions to the transit crisis.  We need to be thinking better, not cheaper”
 

Mosely suggested that not only county government and Port Authority, but representatives for downtown business leaders, community groups, the University of Pittsburgh and Pittsburgh Public Schools—both of whom provide students with bus passes at reduced or no cost, City government—including both the Mayor and City Council, and Transit Workers should come together as a working group to find real solution.
 

 “We all know there is a crisis, but a crisis isn’t a loss.  We haven’t even begun to explore solutions.  This city has always been tough and always been able to find creative ways to come through adversity.  We have to be ready again to make the tough choices so that we can find a plan that is right for everyone.”
 

Whereas many advocates of transit have taken an adversarial position against either Port Authority or the County Executive, Mosely urged cooperation.  “Dan Onorato isn’t the enemy. Port Authority isn’t the enemy….Our enemies are political expediency and quick fixes.”

The League of Young Voters wants more study of the problem, including ways in which the system could be more efficient all the way around.  “We want a better system, not a cheaper one,” said Nish Suvarnakar, Field Director of the League.  He suggested that if a coalition, such as the one Mosely described, could come up with a plan to balance long term fiscal health with the civic necessity of strong public transit, it would go a long way to demonstrating to the rest of the state that Allegheny County and the Port Authority are not looking for a hand out.

Tags: allegheny county, pa league of young voters, pittsburgh, Port Authority

Port Authority Sued Over Denial of Ads on Buses.

The Pittsburgh League of Young Voters, in conjunction with the American Civil Liberties Foundation of Pennsylvania, filed a federal lawsuit today against Port Authority, claiming the agency discriminated against them by not allowing them to run advertisements on their buses promoting the voting rights of ex-criminal offenders. Both organizations say they want to inform ex-offenders of their rights, so that they can register to vote for this November’s election. Under Pennsylvania law, ex-felons are permitted to vote as soon as they complete their prison terms — even if they are serving parole — but the League of Young Voters believes that conflicting information abounds, and most ex-offenders don’t know their rights. They received grants from various organizations to run an advertising campaign, and planned to place advertisements on buses, especially in areas with large populations of ex-offenders

Tags: ACLU, ex-offender voting rights, pa league of young voters, Port Authority