Zooey Zephyr Fires Back as Judge Rejects Her Return to Montana House Floor
signed the bill into law last week.Zephyr filed a lawsuit on Monday that challenged the House's decision, arguing that it violates her First Amendment rights, as well as those of her nearly 11,000 constituents.
District Court Judge Mike Menahan, however, denied Zephyr's request to be reinstated to the House floor, writing in his ruling on Tuesday that it was outside his authority to overrule the state legislature."Plaintiffs' requested relief would require this Court to interfere with legislative authority in a manner that exceeds this Court's authority," read Menahan's decision.In a statement released just a few hours after Menahan's ruling, Zephyr said that the decision to deny her lawsuit was "dangerous" and "undermines the very principles that our country was founded on.""What this ruling implies is that the legislature isn't beholden to the Constitution—that there is no right to free speech in the face of a supermajority," read Zephyr's statement. "That two-thirds of a legislature could come together to silence any member, along with their constituents.
But this cannot be true: legislatures do not lose their right to free speech when they are elected, and my constituents should never lose their right to representation in the People's house.""When I was elected to the State House of Representatives, I vowed to work to ensure that my constituents' voices were heard.
And I will exhaust every avenue to make sure the people who elected me receive their representation," Zephyr continued. "If I cannot do it in the chamber, I will take it to courts.
