English Oppression in Lee County

December 10, 2024 - OPELIKA, AL - The East Alabama Examiner was first to break the Election Day story on yet another 1st Amendment civil right violation in Lee County [https://www.eaexaminer.com/post/auburn-based-independent-news-channel-exposes-the-election-day-tyranny-of-judge-english] on November 5, 2024. This recent embarrassing event indicates Lee County Probate Judge Bill English failed to provide rudimentary instruction to Lee County Poll Workers, specifically Chief Poll Inspector Sharon Braswell, reportedly harassing voters at the Opelika Sportsplex polling facility.

Recent searches found no similar voter harassment in any other Alabama County. Seems counties with more competent, less malicious probate judges are able to accomplish this task they are obliged to provide without incident. English, being aged out (even less worried about uncompetitive Lee County elections) was explicitly comfortable with leaving his malice and incompetence to the Probate Judge Elect [Jere Colley] to suffer.

The Examiner reported, "several claimed Braswell threatened people with arrest, threatened to physically remove voters' MAGA hats, escorted a man's daughter to the bathroom to turn her Trump-Vance sweatshirt inside out and forced a woman out of the polling location." Some Lee Countians I interviewed were appalled at this and made clear they would also find it shameful if done to one expressing their first amendment right to wear Harris/Walz apparel.

Mr. Lance Farrar was not surprised to hear of another Judge English ‘stain’ upon Lee County, "I' have personally observed a pattern and practice of 1 st Amendment violations advanced and fostered by Bill English. This Judge's disdain for individuals exercising the right to address public servants and ask informed questions appears to infuriate him at times. Whether it is witnessing perjury in court without disciplining it, suppressing information about censorship of Public Comments from Lee Countians as Commission chair, conspiring with deputies to forcibly remove peaceful people addressing their Commissioners, or this recent episode of failing to discipline his election poll workers violating a woman's right of expression while voting, it displays Judge English's oppressive spirit."

Among the most vulgar of Judge English episodes of disdain for our 1st Amendment Civil Rights occurred on June 12, 2023, where Bill English directed a Lee County deputy to physically remove Elizabeth Burton from the Lee County Commission podium, a few seconds into her 3-minute public comment. Affidavits submitted to federal court [CIVIL ACT. NO. 3:24-cv-45-ECM] address his malice toward those engaged in speech English doesn';t want aired on the county broadcast of commission meetings or included in the public record.

Another recalled example was English’s disregard for NO votes twice determined by general elections rejecting more government in Lee County when this probate judge advanced a special election to get the desired YES vote where big government advocates carried the day via the low-turnout, poorly announced special election. The person providing this quote didn’t want to be named in fear of retribution upon their spouse employed at Auburn University which also exhibits great malice toward those exercising their 1st Amendment civil rights.

Former State legislator and long time anti-corruption activist John Rice cited similar past episodes of Judge English’s malfeasance presiding over Lee County elections which were not disciplined.

Rice’s most illustrative quote confirming English knowingly violates this civil right, “Ten years ago [2014] while visiting the voting place at Auburn’s Dean Road Recreation Center, the chief poll worker for this primary election informed a voter her lapel button must be removed and her husband’s baseball cap supporting a candidate would have to be removed and returned to their automobile.

The voter, recognizing me [Rice] asked me to intervene and after explaining the situation, I very nicely informed the poll official these voters were not campaigning and were allowed to wear their gear. She argued with me and I called the Probate Office in Opelika. I made contact with Judge English explaining the incident then he spoke to his poll worker on my phone. She handed back my phone and walked away, I wonder how many other people she had accosted this way with her lack of training and supervision.” Again, the November 5th incident is no surprise to those who know English’s long history these past decades and lack of consequences for his civil right violations.

Another interviewed recalled English efforts to dupe Beat 13 voters to adopt county zoning. Once voters discovered the lie about zoning to stop a quarry it was too late. Efforts to undo this travesty have been impeded by English and other politburo members - the county has spent hundreds of thousands of dollars on litigation for something many think would’ve been rejected in a truthful, general election. One witness at the recent Lee County Commission meeting [12-9-24] asked if English’s tie-breaking vote to accept a settlement with taxpayer dollars (which may be covering up his wrongdoings) is a conflict of interest - i.e., a vote requiring him to abstain. Yet another Lee County wrongdoing which not be address by ethics commission, judicial review, etc.?

After reading the Examiner story on this recent Bill English episode, Mr. Peter Byrd also wasn’t surprised by more disdain for transparency and the 1 st Amendment Civil right from this Lee County Commission Chair who’s denied record requests and threatened to not allow Byrd on the agenda because it made him [English] look bad, particularly on issues of contract bidding, the county’s role on hospital oversight and fraudulent traffic studies specifically not following County Access Management Policies/subdivision rules. English failed to bond an engineer as per State law and has used this public servant to harm those he didn’t want employed in spite of no complaint from supervisors. This engineer’s contract renewal was put up early by lame duck commissioner (rejected by 84% of voters who many consider an English crony) instead of letting the elected replacement vote on the contract.

English allowed this lame duck to speak for 7 minutes on his last day about non-agenda items, well beyond the 3 minutes allowed to those who employ them. This is the same commissioner [Long 7-12-21] who made the motion to ‘streamline’ citizen comments - i.e., no longer broadcast comments over the county website or allow them into meeting minutes with the blessing and heavy-handed enforcement of Judge English at times seeming to relish his misuse of County law enforcement.

English has slandered citizens as ‘delinquents’ on bills being paid with county tax dollars, refusing those exercising their rights for copies of documentation for bills they’ve not contracted to pay being sent via US Mail.

A follow-up comment requested from reporter John Brice included, "It is an unfortunate duty to report that this article has largely fallen on deaf ears in Lee County. Instead of serving as a call to action, the apathy and atomization of Lee County residents has resulted in an extended state of inaction even when confronted with gross acts of tyranny by government goons such as Judge English and his marauding minions. As English is set to retire as of January, a unique opportunity exists for a reset in Lee County where natural rights are protected in the public square. More ominously, continued failure to assert the guarantees of liberty will only further embolden would be despots waiting in the wings at the local level who are eager to follow in the ignominious footsteps of English." Sobering text on what must be overcome to improve the quality of life in Lee County with so many uncontested races these past years aiding and abetting English-style oppression.

THE VIEWS OF SUBMITTED EDITORIALS MAY NOT BE THE EXPRESS VIEWS OF THE ALABAMA GAZETTE.