This open letter written by the Columbus Community Bill of Rights (CCBOR) citizen group was posted on Facebook, October 9th, 2018. The letter was written after the Ohio Supreme Court recently blocked their extraordinary efforts to put their Community Bill of Rights in front of the Columbus, Ohio voters on the November, 2018 ballot.
Dear Columbus Community Bill of Rights Friends, Volunteers and Supporters:
On Friday, October 5, 2018, the Ohio Supreme Court refused to reconsider its blocking of the Columbus Community Bill of Rights city ordinance from the November, 2018 ballot. After two rebuttals from our celdf.org legal team, the seven justices made their decision in a 5-2 ruling, with No further justification.
Seven Ohio Supreme Court justices denied 565,000 Columbus Voters the right to vote to protect Columbus Water, Air and Soil from the toxic and radioactive gas & oil extraction & waste industry within our city. Never mind the public health impact of over 860,000 Columbus residents, and over 2 million Columbus Metro residents who depend on clean and safe Columbus water.
Important Facts about our Campaign:
1. The Ohio Constitution, Article 2, gives citizens the right to initiate law and referendum;
2. The Ohio Constitution, Article 1, gives citizens the “right to alter, reform or abolish government whenever they deem necessary”;
3. The Columbus Community Bill of Rights passed all legal requirements to have this city ordinance placed on the ballot;
* Board of Elections (BOE) approved 12,134 valid Columbus Voter signatures;
* City of Columbus declared the CCBOR initiative Is legally sufficient;
* Columbus City Council voted unanimously on July 30, 2018 to place the CCBOR on the ballot; MORE…