State Rep. Reisch loses Twitter lawsuit in federal court

State Rep. Cheri Toalson Reisch has lost a federal lawsuit over her blocking of a constituent on her Twitter account.

Western District of Missouri Judge Brian C. Wimes ruled Friday that Reisch violated Mike Campbell’s constitutional rights by blocking him from her Twitter account after he retweeted a critical message from one of Reisch’s colleagues. The message, initially posted by Rep. Kip Kendrick, D-Columbia, panned Reisch for her questioning of her Democrat opponent’s patriotism.

Citing precedent set in a New York case against President Donald Trump, Wimes ruled that Reisch’s use of her Twitter account made it a public forum, and that her blocking of a constituent was a violation of First Amendment free speech rights.

Reisch had testified in court that she considered the Twitter account — which she has since deleted — a personal account instead of an official account used in her duties as a Missouri House member representing the 44th District. In his decision, however, Wimes noted a long list of political tweets posted on the page related to her campaign and House duties.

Wimes noted that Reisch included a link to her campaign page in her Twitter bio, created the account when she announced her Missouri House candidacy and tweeted about House action, including a photo of herself with then-House Speaker Todd Richardson.

Wimes heard the case in April.

Andy Hirth, who represented Campbell, said he thinks the ruling will stand up well if Reisch appeals. Wimes’ decision has larger implications in an emerging area of law, he said, especially if a higher court, in this case the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals, upholds the ruling.

“I think this is a very important issue and as the world of social media becomes bigger and bigger in our political world, these types of issues will have to be sorted out,” Hirth said.

Reisch, in a statement released by her lawyer, said she was disappointed in the decision.

It’s a judgment that impacts not only me but all public servants who simply want to avoid the ugly name-calling and vitriol that are too often present on social media,” Reisch wrote. “I take great pride in the fact my office is always available and accessible to my constituents, and I am a strong supporter of free and open dialogue on the issues. However, this lawsuit is one filed by an individual who never had the intent of communicating with me or my office, but instead wanted to generate publicity with frivolous ‘Politigation.’ “

Reisch said she’s weighing whether to appeal the decision.

With his decision Wimes awarded an injunction barring Reisch from blocking any other Twitter user based on the content of the users’ posts .