End of the Road for "Sour Grapes" Lawsuit by Losing Legislators

Good riddance to bad rubbish. The Center for Civic Policy reports that the lawsuit filed by three former state legislators against several non-profit groups is officially dead. Former state Senators James Taylor and Shannon Robinson and state representative Dan Silva filed the so-called "sour grapes" suit in August 2008 against non-profit groups that publicized their voting records.

The three former legislators asked in their suit that the outcome of the 2008 primary elections be voided, thereby returning them to their respective offices. All three former lawmakers lost their Democratic primary battles to reform candidates who are now serving in the New Mexico Legislature in Santa Fe -- namely, Sen. Eric Griego, Sen. Tim Keller and Rep. Eleanor Chavez.

District Judge Linda M. Vanzi dismissed the suit last November. At the time, the three legislators said they planned to appeal the dismissal. This week, court records confirm that the trio missed the deadlines for meeting any of the Court of Appeal's requirements for taking the appeal to a higher court by more than a month. As they say, all hat, no cattle.

"This lawsuit was nothing more than an attempt to muzzle and harass nonprofit organizations," stated Matt Brix, Policy Director for the Center for Civic Policy, in a written statement. Brix continued, "We will continue to aggressively oppose any effort to silence nonprofits from one of the critical roles we play - to educate citizens about how their elected leaders vote." In the 2009 state legislative session, nonprofit organizations anticipate efforts to force disclosure requirements on them as a way to stifle the "watchdog" role they play.

Stay tuned, as I'll be posting more on the effort that appears to be brewing in the dark corners of the Roundhouse to try and stymie the critical issue advocacy and transparency efforts conducted by a number of New Mexico's nonprofits. Certain powers that be don't like the public becoming informed about their voting records and the big dollar campaign donors who hold the clout. We all know why.

See several previous posts about the lawsuit and attacks on nonprofits in New Mexico , here and here (with further links).

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