Cincinnati Enquirer: Judge tosses suit over abortion billboards

Members of the Susan B. Anthony List, based in Washington, argued the election law is unconstitutional because it restricted their free-speech right to oppose Driehaus in the 2010 election, which was won by U.S. Rep. Steve Chabot.

This article first appeared online at The Cincinnati Enquirer on August 1, 2011.

Judge tosses suit over abortion billboards

 

Dan Horn reports:

A federal judge Monday tossed out a lawsuit against former Congressman Steve Driehaus that challenged the way Ohio handles disputes over election advertising.

The lawsuit, filed last year by an anti-abortion group, claimed Ohio law prevented Driehaus opponents from erecting billboards critical of him for his vote on health-care reform.

Driehaus said the billboards made “false claims” under Ohio law and the Ohio Elections Commission found probable cause that the ads violated the law.

Members of the Susan B. Anthony List, based in Washington, argued the election law is unconstitutional because it restricted their free-speech right to oppose Driehaus in the 2010 election, which was won by U.S. Rep. Steve Chabot.

U.S. District Judge Timothy Black dismissed the group’s lawsuit Monday, saying he has no jurisdiction to hear the case because the billboards were never erected and the elections commission never made a final ruling on whether they would have violated the law.

“Without enforcement action,” Black wrote, “a case or controversy does not exist.”

The group has said the billboards would have stated: “Shame on Steve Driehaus! Driehaus voted FOR taxpayer-funded abortion.”

The health-care law allows people receiving federal subsidies to sign up for health plans that cover abortion, but it requires people to pay for that option with their own money. The law was accompanied by an executive order from President Barack Obama reaffirming a long-standing federal ban on using tax dollars for abortion. Driehaus said those restrictions made the Susan B. Anthony List’s claims false.

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