Political signs removed in right of way

[Omaha Steve]

http://www.omaha.com/article/20101005/NEWS01/710059906#political-signs-removed-in-right-of-way

Published Tuesday October 5, 2010

Photo:http://www.omaha.com/apps/pbcsi.dll/bilde?Site=OW&Date=20101005&Category=NEWS01&ArtNo=710059906&Ref=AR&Profile=1003161&maxw=490&maxh=275
Mayoral candidate Bob Meyer moves one of his campaign signs Monday in Grand Island. Meyer was asked by the city to move his sign out of the right of way.


GRAND ISLAND, Neb. — The Grand Island Building Department is pulling up political campaign signs.
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Under Grand Island’s city code, which allows political signs to be erected 30 days before an election, the signs for the Nov. 2 general election were legal as of Monday.

The American Civil Liberties Union challenged Grand Island’s sign ordinance in a letter it sent to the city in April.

The ACLU said that time limitations on signs are a violation of the First Amendment right to free speech and that the 8th U.S. Circuit Court, the federal court with jurisdiction over Nebraska, made such as ruling several years ago.

ACLU Nebraska said the 8th Circuit Court ruled that political signs could remain up as long as their owners chose.

The city made note of the letter in April but has made no changes to its sign regulations.

FULL story at link.

[pampango]

1. In our small town in Ohio, they always removed all signs from the right of way.

That includes commercial signs, political signs and everything else. Usually the owner just collects the signs from city storage and puts them back a few feet farther from the road and off the right of way. I don't know that the sign ordinance here has ever been tested in court.

[Occulus]

2. People in authority ignoring decisions they don't like is becoming more and more common

For example, in my workplace, it doesn't matter if binding arbitration finds in favor of the union or not; managers are choosing to ignore decisions against them, openly continuing the practice that led to the grievance in the first place.