Havana resident Chrissy Shorter-Arnold is suing Gadsden County Commissioner Eric Hinson as an individual and in his official capacity as commissioner.
According to a complaint filed in the United States District Court Northern District of Florida, while searching for information about the Gadsden County Voting Lines redistricting, Shorter-Arnold realized she had been blocked from Hinson’s Facebook page.
“Not only am I a constituent of Commissioner Hinson’s District but also am a candidate who is currently running against Commissioner Eric Hinson for the District 1 seat.
In the complaint, Shorter-Arnold stated she had others pull up Hinson’s pages to make sure she was blocked.
During a Board of County Commissioners meeting held on Jan. 23, Shorter-Arnold spoke on the matter during the portion of the meeting when citizens are given the opportunity to speak.
Shorter-Arnold said it was a violation of the First Amendment.
However, none of the commissioners responded to her concerns.
Shorter said she waited a few days before filing the complaint to give Hinson an opportunity to unblock her.
“As of the date that I filed that lawsuit, Hinson has yet to unblock me,” Shorter-Arnold said.
Hinson was served on Feb. 20, and has 21 days from that date to respond.
Shorter-Arnold is asking the courts to enjoin Hinson from blocking constituents from his public social media pages where he discusses government business, and enter a judgment declaring such actions as clear violations of the First Amendment.
Hinson declined to comment.
This is an on-going story. The Gadsden County News Service will continue to cover this case.
Erin Hill – Gadsden County News Service
