The American Civil Liberties Union of Maine has filed a federal lawsuit on behalf of a group of Yarmouth residents over a new charter provision that blocks town and school employees from serving on the Town Council.

Zachary Heiden, legal director of the ACLU of Maine, photographed in 2013, says, “If we are successful in our suit against Yarmouth, any towns that have such restrictions will remove them rather than waiting for additional litigation.” Gabe Souza/Staff Photographer

One of the plaintiffs is Meghan Casey, a current town councilor and teacher at Yarmouth High School. Her election last year spurred a former town councilor to push for the rule change, which was approved by voters in November. The lawsuit alleges that the charter provision violates the First Amendment right of school and town employees to run for and hold public office, as well as the right of town residents to vote for their preferred candidate.

The ACLU of Maine is representing Casey and five other residents in the lawsuit.

“I care deeply about this town, and I have been honored to serve on the town council,” Casey said in a news release announcing the lawsuit. “If anything, I hope my experience as a teacher in Yarmouth Schools gives me a useful perspective on the needs of our town. This change will block me from serving again.”

Yarmouth Town Manager Nathaniel Tupper said the charter change got on the ballot through a petition, and he was not aware of the town council taking any position on the ballot question last year. Tupper also said he has not yet read the complaint but received notice from the ACLU of Maine that a legal challenge was coming.

“This does not come as a shock to us,” he said.

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Tupper declined to say whether he thought the charter provision would stand up to the lawsuit. Before Casey was elected, town attorney Shana Cook Mueller said there were no prohibitive conflicts of interest that would bar Casey’s candidacy. Mueller referenced a 2013 court case in which a judge decided a policy prohibiting South Portland employees from serving on the city council or school board violated their First Amendment rights. The charter provision in Yarmouth only refers to the town council, not the school committee.

“I don’t think there has been a question quite like this in Maine yet,” Tupper said.

The proponents of the charter change formed a group called Yarmouth Citizens for Responsible Government. They included former town councilor James MacLeod, who said the idea was not a personal attack and is different than the policy challenged in South Portland.

“Should there be any boundaries at all of (school or town) employees serving on the Town Council? … Common sense and good governance would suggest that those would be separated,” MacLeod told The Forecaster last year.

It is not clear how many other towns have similar rules.

“Hopefully, if we are successful in our suit against Yarmouth, any towns that have such restrictions will remove them rather than waiting for additional litigation,” said Zachary Heiden, legal director for the ACLU of Maine.

Casey is allowed to finish her term but would be prohibited from running for reelection under the rule. She is the only current elected official among the six plaintiffs. Two are volunteer firefighter Mark Reinsborough and middle school employee Elizabeth Reinsborough, who both said they would be barred from running for town council because of the charter change. The other three are residents who say they do not support the charter amendment. They are former school committee member David Ray, former town councilor Thomas Reinsborough and resident Kathryn Sharpless.

“I’ve definitely thought about running for town council,” Elizabeth Reinsborough said in the news release. “But I work at the middle school, so this change would keep me from doing so. I would never want to have to choose between serving my community this way or keeping my job.”

The complaint was filed in U.S. District Court in Portland.

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