Connecticut's Supreme Court ruled that the free speech rights of two Republicans were violated after they were fined thousands for criticizing the governor in publicly-funded campaign ads
Connecticut's Supreme Court on Monday ruled that state elections officials violated the constitutional free speech rights of two Republicans running for the state legislature when it fined them thousands of dollars for criticizing the Democratic governor in ads paid for by their publicly funded campaigns in 2014. In a 5-0 decision, the justices overturned the $5,000 civil fine against now-Sen. Rob Sampson and the $2,000 penalty against former Sen.
The commission had determined that Sampson and Markley violated the rules of the state's Citizens' Election Program, which provides public funds to campaigns for statewide office and the legislature, when they sent out campaign materials touting how they would fight what they called the bad policies of then-Gov. Dannel Malloy.
Sampson and Markley appealed to Superior Court, which upheld the commission's decision in 2022. Judge Joseph Shortall said that Sampson and Markley did not prove that their constitutional rights were violated by the commission, and that they had voluntarily agreed to accept public funding for their campaigns and the conditions that came along with the money. They next appealed to the Supreme Court, which overturned the lower court on Monday.
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