The World Around You

Congratulations to Nancy Worley’s attorneys for finally getting her to shut up. This is already a very positive outcome from this case.

I have sympathy for the position the Attorney General is in right now. This is a difficult case to prosecute, given how the laws are written and the judge seems to be having difficulty with it as well.

Worley is accused of sending campaign letters, campaign contribution envelopes and bumper stickers to five of her employees in the secretary of state’s office. She is charged under a state law that makes it a misdemeanor for a public official to ask for campaign donations from employees and a felony for an official to use his or her position to influence the vote of any person.

Assistant Attorney General Ben Baxley told Hobbs that Worley was trying to influence votes by asking in the letter that the employees consider putting signs in their yards or bumper stickers on their cards. But [Judge Truman] Hobbs questioned how Worley’s letter could be considered a felony.

“I have a hard time saying if I ask for a contribution it’s a misdemeanor, but if I ask you to put up a yard sign it’s a felony,” Hobbs said.

That is challenging, but I can see it, so I hope you can find a way to see it as well. The way the law is written, the kind of requests she made beyond donations are a felony. I know it’s bizarre, but it’s the law in Alabama.

Montgomery Advertiser: Judge questions Worley trial charges