Town Councilman, now Mayor-Elect, is Vindicated

Matthew Tortorice v. City of Margaret

A small-town mayor and city council violated the First Amendment when they tried to shut down public scrutiny of its meetings. CIR’s action forced the city to reverse course and pay for their actions.

Our lawsuit exposed just how far local officials will go to evade accountability. Councilman Matt Tortorice ran for office in Margaret, Alabama, with a few simple goals, including to make the local government more transparent.

When the City refused to record its council meetings, Matt decided to record the meetings himself and post them on his website so residents could watch them at home. This exercise was met with a campaign of obstruction, threats, and unconstitutional censorship.

The City Council first banned all recordings, then after Matt raised legal objections, limited recordings to an area obstructed by a noisy air conditioner. Matt was also physically intimidated and prevented from doing his job as a councilman, including one meeting at which the mayor instructed the police chief to physically evict Matt from the chamber for attempting to record what was going on.

Matt refused to let this abuse stand, and we were glad to help him vindicate his rights. Matt also thought his recordings were necessary to expose the majority on the city counsel who obstructed consideration of reforms he proposed.

After nine months of pre-trial proceedings, the City of Margaret agreed to a binding legal settlement and court order that delivers everything Matt asked for. The City formally acknowledged that the “First Amendment protects the right of the public, including Matt, to attend public sessions of the meetings of the City Council and to make audio and video recordings of the same.”

Officials must now proactively ensure that elected officials, journalists, or members of the public can record future meetings freely. The city also agreed to pay Matt $1 in personal damages and $40,000 in attorney fees, a reminder that violating the First Amendment comes at a cost.

After the court order was signed, Matt expressed gratitude “not just for myself but for everyone in Margaret who deserves a transparent and accountable government.”

The City residents seemed to agree. In an unexpected postscript, Matt recently won election as Mayor of
Margaret, defeating the incumbent mayor who had played a role in thwarting Matt’s constitutional right to record the council meetings.

And until Matt is sworn in as mayor on November 2, he is displaying his one dollar in damages at his designated seat in the City Council chambers, to the visible irritation of some of his fellow council members.

Naturally, CIR took no position on his election, but the result suggests that the citizens of Margaret appreciated Matt’s fight for government transparency.

As for us, we’ve shared the attorney fee award with the local counsel who worked with us on the case, and we’re ready to fight the next battle to keep government in line.