ACLU Sues John Merrill For Blocking People On Twitter

MONTGOMERY, AL - Alabama Secretary of State John Merrill has more on his plate these days than just running for re-election. The American Civil Liberties Union, on behalf of three Alabama citizens, has sued Merrill because he has blocked constituents from his Twitter account.

A report by Alabama Media Group said the three citizens - Mountain Brook resident Kimberly Fasking, Heather Melvin Boothe and educator Herbert Hicks - were each blocked by Merrill from viewing his Twitter account or commenting on anything on his page because they, at different times, said something to Merrill that he supposedly disagreed with or deemed critical.

Merrill, however, issued a statement regarding the lawsuit. "The lawsuit filed today by the ACLU of Alabama is an attempted political hack job," Merrill said. "Members of this liberal group are attempting to create an issue concerning lack of access to public officials that simply does not exist. As every member of the media and general public who interacts with this office knows, the most important thing for an elected official to do is to remain accessible to the people of this state. That is why I always make my cell number - 334.328.2787 - available to all Alabamians."

Merrill added, "However, when people use a platform for public debate as a way to promote their agenda, regardless of the presentation of any factual information, I believe it is my responsibility to designate attempts to misinform the public as false. And, when users continue to publish those instances, or when they make hurtful statements about me or my family, I try to reduce the exposure to avoid misinforming members of the public. Further, the account in question - @JohnHMerrill - is exclusively my account, while the account @alasecofstate is the state’s public account, and this account has never blocked anyone from viewing any of the posts on its page. The @JohnHMerrill account has remained a personal account since its creation, in October 2009. I am recognized as one of the most accessible and personally available elected officials in the history of the state of Alabama, which is why I visit all 67 counties each year. It is my desire to continue to be recognized in that way as long as I have the privilege to continue to serve in public office." (For more updates on this story and free news alerts for your neighborhood, sign up for your local Patch morning newsletter.)

The complaint, filed Wednesday, says Merrill blocking the Twitter users "imposes an unconstitutional restriction on their participation in a designated public forum. It imposes an unconstitutional restriction on their right to access statements that Defendants are otherwise making available to the public at large. It imposes an unconstitutional restriction on their right to petition the government for redress of grievances."

"It is upsetting to me that the Secretary of State, who primarily uses his Twitter account to disseminate information on issues related to his office, has also weaponized that account by blocking those with whom he disagrees politically," Fasking said in an ACLU statement. "It is not the Secretary of State's job to communicate only with those who agree with him, but with all of the people of the State of Alabama."

The question of whether public officials have a right to block their constituents has emerged as a national issue in recent months. In May, the topic garnered national headlines when a federal judge ruledthat President Donald Trump cannot block Twitter users. The ruling came in response to a July 2017 lawsuit filed by Columbia University's Knight First Amendment Institute and seven Americans who Trump had blocked on Twitter.

Merrill faces Democrat Heather Milam in the November general election. He will be seeking his second term as Alabama's Secretary of State.

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