Warden To Aclu: "help Me Protect The First Amendment!"

November 03, 2009 ACLU of ARIZONA Attn: Intake Screening PO Box 17148 Phoenix, AZ 85011-0148 Website: www.acluaz.org Re: May Arizona Courts Deny First Amendment Protection to Persons the Court Finds Politically Objectionable? Dear Sir: From right wing Tea Party activists marching in the streets of Tucson to left wing Brown Berets clashing with Neo Nazis in Southern California: as we move from an era of political apathy to intense political activism and vigorous public debate on the contentious issues which divide our country, America needs the ACLU more than ever to protect the people’s right of assembly and free political speech. The Arizona Appellate Court Division 2 recently denied jurisdiction and refused to hear my Petition for Special Action involving the most egregious violation of First Amendment rights on record: the three year suspension of my political rights by Order of the Tucson Municipal Court, which declared I “may not speak within a 1,000 feet of any demonstration.” “Alleged prior restraints on free speech will be upheld only if they provide for a prompt decision during which the status quo is maintained, and there is the opportunity for a prompt judicial decision.” Dream Palace v. County of Maricopa, 384 F.3d 990, 991 (9th Cir. 2004) I believe the clear language of two Courts, the Ninth Circuit in Dream Palace and the Arizona Supreme Court in Citizen Publishing Co. v Miller, 210 Ariz. 513 (both citing the U.S. Supreme Court) forbid courts otherwise competent, to deny jurisdiction in cases involving prior restraint of political speech and other serious First Amendment violations merely because the courts may find the subject matter politically embarrassing.

To rule otherwise means simply this: By closing their eyes and plugging their ears Arizona Courts may deny First Amendment rights to all persons the Court finds politically objectionable. “(I)t is plain that a State cannot escape its constitutional obligations by the simple device of denying jurisdiction in such cases to Courts otherwise competent.” Dream Palace at 1006 citing Bilagody v Thorneycroft, 125 Ariz. 88 (App) I request the ACLU read my current Petition for Special Action #999001032P which may be found on the website of the Arizona Appellate Court Division 2 at: http://www.appeals2.az.gov/APL2Docs1/COA/263/2357599.pdf and submit an Amicus Curiae Brief on the singular issue I plan to present in my Petition for Review to the Arizona Supreme Court: “May the Arizona Appellate Courts Escape Their Constitutional Obligation to Protect First Amendment Rights by Denying Jurisdiction?” Regarding your policy of four week case evaluation: Within the next several days, as per Arizona Rules of Civil Appellate Procedure Rule 23 (j), I will file in the Arizona Appellate Court Division 2 a Motion to Extend Time to File a Petition for Review to the Arizona Supreme Court. Very Truly Yours, Roy Warden 1015 W. Prince Road #131-182 Tucson Arizona 85705 (520) 300-4596 cc:

Former Arizona Supreme Court Chief Justice Thomas Zlaket Maricopa County Attorney Andrew Thomas Subscribers to CSII Press, including 1,000 Pima County attorneys and legal professionals