By Eric Nusbaum, Assistant Editor, JTNews
King County Metro buses will not be running a controversial ad critical of Israel any time in the near future. Federal Judge Richard A. Jones rejected an injunction sought by local group Seattle Mideast Awareness Campaign (SeaMAC) that would have forced Metro to immediately run the ads that state “Israeli War Crimes: Your Tax Dollars at Work,” on 12 Seattle bus routes.
An ACLU attorney representing SeaMAC and a King County attorney presented their respective cases in a Seattle courtroom on Feb. 14. Their arguments hinged on different readings of First Amendment law. ACLU attorney Jeffrey Grant suggested that King County buses were a designated free speech zone, while King County attorney Endel Kolde argued they were a limited public forum — not subject to full First Amendment protection.
In a ruling released late Friday, Feb. 18, Judge Jones sided with the county. Jones wrote that King County’s decision to renege on its bus ads contract with SeaMAC was “viewpoint neutral,” and that the factors that led the county to pull the ads, such as potential vandalism, violence, and service interruptions, were “reasonably foreseeable.”
“We are pleased with the court’s finding that the decision to pull the ad was reasonable in light of the threats of violence and disruption from members of the public and the safety concerns of bus drivers and law enforcement,” said Kolde in a statement. “This decision is good for transit and good for the people of King County.”
But the ACLU has indicated that this decision will not be the final legal ruling on the advertisementss.
“The ACLU of Washington still thinks it has a strong case and will be proceeding with the lawsuit on behalf of the Seattle Mideast Awareness Campaign, seeking to have King County honor its contract to run the campaign’s approved ad on Metro buses,” wrote spokesperson Doug Honig in an e-mail.
Honig indicated to JTNews that the suit could unfold one of two ways: Either with a lawsuit in civil court, which would bring the case to a full trial, or with an appeal of Jones’ ruling on the preliminary injunction, which would land in the case in front of the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals. He said there was not yet a timeline for the decision.
Pro-Israel groups, who lobbied for King County to pull the ad, are happy with the ruling but realize that the case is out of their hands.
“Obviously we’re pleased with the decision, for all the reasons we presented along with the Federation, AJC, and others, to King County,” said Rob Jacobs, executive director of Israel advocacy group StandWithUs’ Seattle office. “It reinforces that our arguments had legitimacy when we made them before. We’re waiting until the courts make a final decision.”
The controversy is already two months removed from the initially proposed launch date for the ads, December 27, 2010, that was intended to coincide with the anniversary of the Gaza war of 2008-09. County executive Dow Constantine cancelled the ads on December 23.
King County reported receiving thousands of e-mails and phone calls complaining about the ads, including some violent threats. Before and during the injunction hearing, the county argued that reneging on the ad contract was a business decision, not a political decision — and that running the ads could have damaged Metro service.
Kolde, at the Feb. 14 hearing, cited threats made to the county in the aftermath of news stories about the initial ads. He alluded to September 11, terrorist attacks on transit in London and Madrid, and the history of bus attacks in Israel.
The ACLU and SeaMAC argued that the county’s claims were baseless and that the decision to not run the ads was political.