LAWN MAINTENANCE CREWS ORDERED TO REMOVE ONLY ADVERTISING MEDIUM FOR INDEPENDENT CANDIDATE

OXFORD, PA – By law, candidates for public office are permitted to place lawn signs on public property beginning on October 1 prior to the November election. The signs must be removed one week after the election. On October 4th and 5th John Murphy and one of his volunteers, also in his 60s went up and down every on-ramp and off-ramp of Route 1, south-bound and south-bound, from Kennett Square to Oxford Pennsylvania placing approximately 200 signs over the two-day weekend.

On Monday morning another one of John Murphy’s volunteers from Oxford, PA witnessed PENNDOT (Pennsylvania Department of Transportation) crushing his campaign signs in the medial strip of Route One. Later the Murphy campaign received an e-mail message from a PENNDOT employee named Roger Palmer informing John Murphy that he must remove the signs. Mr. Murphy replied that it was not required that he remove the signs but that the highway department could temporarily remove the signs then mow the grass and replace the signs securely in their original position.

John Murphy informed the PENNDOT representative that the removal of his signs would constitute a violation of his First Amendment rights and would be a direct interference with a Federal election.

None of this mattered to PENNDOT. Not private property. Not the law. Not the Constitution. Not interference in a federal election. Unlike the Republican Party which has a half million dollars and can produce radio and television commercials and send out direct mail pieces, the placement of lawn signs is the primary means of creating name recognition for an independent candidate. Palmer was informed of this but still deliberately decided that he would destroy the independent congressional candidate John Murphy's First Amendment rights and directly interfere in a federal election by making it impossible for Murphy to bring his candidacy to the attention of the voters in Southwestern Chester County.

John Murphy told his volunteers "there are many ways that you can subvert democracy. The Republican Party did it in 2000 when they prevented people from voting in Florida. The Democrat Party did in Pennsylvania in 2004 when they removed Ralph Nader from the ballot and again in 2006 when they removed Carl Romanelli from the ballot. The democratic process can also be subverted by hindering voters from becoming familiar with those candidates who are running for office".

John Murphy told Palmer that by removing his signs Palmer would be guilty of rigging an election just as surely as those who rig voting machines. None of this meant anything to Palmer who then ordered the removal of all 200 of Murphy's campaign signs from every on-ramp and off-ramp, north bound and south bound on Route 1 from Kennett Square to Oxford Pennsylvania.

John Murphy said "we have no extra lawn signs. We had just enough to cover the district. Moreover, all of my volunteers have their assignments for the next two weekends. Palmer knew that he was wantonly interfering with a federal election and proceeded to do so in the fashion of a paid saboteur or a member of a fascist organization".

John Murphy plans take legal action as soon as it is has been determined if he has standing to sue. Murphy continued, "this is a disgrace to democracy. All Palmer had to do was to have his crew pick up the signs on each ramp and then replace them. Democracy and private property and democratic elections were without any value to his bureaucratic mindset".

"The Corporate-Free Candidate"