The Brown administration's "Signgate" scandal continues with Restore the Delta and 16 water, reclamation and levee districts in the North Delta demanding that the Caltrans "cease and desist removal of signs in the Delta. The Brown administration apparently has no respect for the First Amendment, Freedom of the Speech and the U.S. Constitution, just as he has no respect for the people of the Delta, fishermen, Indian Tribes, family farmers, grassroots environmentalists and the vast majority of Californians. Here is today's press release from Restore the Delta:
Restore the Delta, North Delta Agencies Tell Caltrans: Stop Trespassing, Confiscation to Silence Tunnels Critics; Cease & Desist Removing "Save the Delta! Stop the Tunnels!" signs on private property
Caltrans discriminatorily enforced according to sign content.
Who Ordered Signs Confiscated?
Sacramento, CA - Restore the Delta and 16 water, reclamation and levee districts in the North Delta demanding that the Brown Administration Department of Transportation’s (Caltrans) "cease and desist removal of signs in the Delta."
Lawyers for the Local Agencies of the North Delta (LAND) wrote to Caltrans demanding it stop its discriminatory and illegal confiscation of land and business owners’ "Save the Delta! Stop the Tunnels!" signs "without any notice to the landowners and without permission to enter private property." LAND wrote that Caltrans lacks any legal basis to silence critics of his proposed Peripheral Tunnels. Restore the Delta called on Gov. Brown to order Caltrans crews to stop "discriminatorily" enforcing confiscating signs expressing citizens’ political views, to identify who ordered the confiscation of the signs, and to cease confiscating signs.
Restore the Delta announced a campaign to have supporters throughout California plant signs in their yards to protest the tunnels and Caltrans’ intimidation tactics.
LAND’s attorneys wrote Caltrans "any further removal of political signs from private property or threats of fines against residents and businesses will not be tolerated. In addition to the removal being contrary to the procedures provided in the Outdoor Advertising Act, the entry by Caltrans may constitute a trespass as well a conversion of private property. Caltrans employees must be advised that they may not enter private property for the purpose of removing signs and should such removals continue to occur, this office will pursue all available judicial remedies to stop Caltrans from interfering with Delta residents’ right to freedom of speech under the First Amendment to the Constitution and against any employee acting to violate the constitutional rights of Delta residents."
Legal experts from the First Amendment Project have also determined that Caltrans was wrong to confiscate the signs, pointing to a 1996 Attorney General opinion finding that the "expression of a political belief by a property owner whether displayed by signs or otherwise" is constitutionally protected. Caltrans’ actions amount to illegal search and seizure, and violate due process rights of the property owners.
Fourth generation Delta farmer Warren Smith told a news conference in front of Caltrans’ Sacramento headquarters that he "never dreamed Caltrans could trample his land and his rights." Smith has reposted his sign, and said he measured its location and confirmed it was outside Caltrans’ claimed right of way. "If they want to confiscate my sign again, there’s going to be trouble."
"We are outraged that the Brown Administration is trampling the rights of business and land owners who have posted signs on their property opposing the Peripheral Tunnels," said Barbara Barrigan-Parrilla, executive director of Restore the Delta. "State government officials are trying to intimidate and interfere with the rights of Delta residents who oppose Governor Brown's plan to build twin tunnels that will destroy their homes, their businesses, Bay area and coastal fisheries, and the largest estuary on the Pacific Coast of the Americas."
"This is biased enforcement to silence critics of the Governor's proposed Peripheral Tunnels," said Barrigan-Parrilla. "Anyone driving on I-5, Highway 99, and other state highways in the San Joaquin Valley can see signs from Westlands Water District mega-growers and others blaring their views on water. Caltrans has happily left those signs in place. The people of California don't pay state taxes so Caltrans can trample property and free speech rights in service of Gov. Brown's doomed tunnels project.
"Caltrans did not follow the required process about notifying people to move signs if Caltrans believed they were not located properly. Caltrans does not have the right to enter private property to remove signs without following the legal process described in the Business and Professions Code.
"Delta residents were threatened by Caltrans employees with huge $10,000 fines if their signs were not 660 feet from the public right of way," said Barrigan-Parrilla.
Many, if not all, of the signs were located on private property and were removed by Caltrans employees without any notice to the landowners and without permission for Caltrans employees to enter private property. Earlier this week, Caltrans advised representatives of the local grassroots group, Restore the Delta, that the removal of signs was allegedly undertaken pursuant to the Outdoor Advertising Act (Bus. & Prof. Code, §§ 5200 et seq.). According to statements by Caltrans officials, such removal is proper if the sign is within 660 feet of a public roadway. But the signs are political opinions of private persons, and are not advertising. Caltrans has no authority to remove the signs under the Outdoor Advertising Act.
When its actions were challenged, Caltrans officials changed their story and said that signs within 14 feet of a roadway would be removed without identifying the legal basis for such removal. Caltrans has failed to cite any legal authority for this new explanation.
Restore the Delta is a 10,000-member grassroots organization committed to making the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta fishable, swimmable, drinkable, and farmable to benefit all of California. Restore the Delta works to improve water quality so that fisheries and farming can thrive together again in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta.
Contact: Steve Hopcraft 916/457-5546; steve@hopcraft.com; Twitter: @shopcraft
Barbara Barrigan-Parrilla 209/479-2053 barbara@restorethedelta.org;
Twitter: @RestoretheDe
http://www.restorethedelta.org