Dayton Chronicle - Your Hometown News Source

DAYTON–A local political action organization and two associated individuals have sued Dayton resident Jessica Ruffcorn, organizer of a petition to dissolve the Columbia County Rural Library District, also naming Columbia County, County Auditor Will Hutchens and Director of Elections Cathy Abel, seeking an injunction to prevent Proposition 2 from appearing on the November, 2023 General Election Ballot, and fees. The complaint was filed Tuesday, August 29.

The complaint asserts that the proposition to dissolve the Columbia County Rural Library District (CCRLD) "is invalid because it disenfranchises constitutionally qualified electors, exceeds the Unincorporated County's initiative power, and is plagued by fraud." The group alleges that the proposition "is constitutionally infirm; plagued by procedural failures that render it unlawful and invalid; and was put on the ballot through fraud."

Filing the suit, through Richard A. Jacobs, an attorney with Jacobs Law PLLC, Walla Walla, is the locally based Neighbors United for Progress (NUP) political action committee, Elise Severe, a resident of unincorporated Columbia County and NUP Chair, and Gerald M. Kaiser, of Dayton.

Due to the contentious issue of certain books on subjects of LGBTQ, consent, anti-racism issues and similar topics being displayed and available at the Dayton Memorial Library–which some deem inappropriate for children without parental oversight–Ruffcorn initiated a petition on February 28, 2023, calling for dissolution of the CCRLD and submitted it to the County Auditor on June 21.

Hutchens responded to the CCRLD chair Jay Ball on June 28 that there were insufficient valid signatures to qualify the proposition for the ballot. Ruffcorn, according to the court filing, resubmitted signatures prior to the deadline and the Auditor's Office advised the CCRLD board of the authenticated petition, and the group voted to place the measure on the ballot in an August 2 special meeting.

The matter has not been heard and will not be entered onto the court docket until one of the parties files a note for a hearing or to be placed on the docket, according the Clerk Krissy Chapman on August 31.

Ruffcorn informed the Dayton Chronicle that she is in the process of securing representation this week in order to respond within the allotted 20 days after the August 29 filing. Ruffcorn said she is not receiving any financial assistance.

The court filing pointed out that the County Auditor will be preparing for printing the voter pamphlets and ballots in the first weeks of September. The deadline to send information to the printer is September 13 and publication date for ballots will be September 22, the complaint indicates.

"Proposition 2 is censorship by another name, but the legal issues are straightforward, and we believe we will prevail," stated a news release from the NUP. "There should be no taxation without representation. The constitution is the supreme law of the land. And Fraud unravels everything."

The NUP suit alleges that the proposition appearance on the ballot "will unconstitutionally disenfranchise Dayton city resident members who were not petitioned before placing the initiative on the ballot; unconstitutionally disenfranchise Dayton residents who will not be allowed to vote on the Proposition despite being constitutionally qualified voters; unconstitutionally disenfranchise Unincorporated County residents by placing the proposition on the ballot without following proper statutory procedures; harm the City by improperly permitting a ballot initiative that conflicts with the use and enjoyment of continuing library services; and disenfranchise all voters through fraud in violation of Washington law," the complaint asserts.

"It is important to note that the petition is to dissolve the taxing district and not the library per se," Ruffcorn states in the news release.

"It is doubtful that many city residents were aware that when they released control to the CCRLD, by voting to join the district, that they would also give up their opportunity to vote in the event of dissolution," Ruffcorn continued. "It is also important to note that the reason the incorporated voters do not get a vote in the dissolution is because the RCW gives them options to un-annex from the district, to form a contract with another district, or start their own library. At this point, the only option for unincorporated voters is to dissolve the district. The Neighbors United for Progress PAC have filed a lawsuit that would remove the right of the citizens in the unincorporated county to petition and vote in this matter."

NUP's suit asserts that the proposition "exceeds the scope of the Unincorporated County's Initiative Power because it conflicts with state law" because it violates the "free and equal elections clause of the state constitution and federal constitution by disenfranchising qualified voters.

The complaint alleges that "a local group" objected to at least 11 books, claiming the "books were shelved in the Children's Section of the Library. But this was never true," the court document indicates. "Many of the books were, instead, shelved in the young adult non-fiction section alongside the parenting section of the library. They were merely on the same floor–although the opposite end–as the Children's Section. ...Young children were about as likely to stray from the cartoonish displays of the Children's Section to the other side of the library to read What's the T or This Books is Anti-Racist as they were to brush up on locking in a favorable mortgage rate," the suit alleges.

The NUP further alleges that a member of the Columbia County Conservatives (CCC) moved a book to a table near the Children's section to take a photograph to post on social media.

"I consider the entire basement the Children's Section," Ruffcorn said.

Ruffcorn asserted in a news release that she and other citizens attempted to negotiate book-placement policies involving "age-inappropriate sexually explicit materials in our children's section ... (ages 1-17). All requests were to relocate, not ban books," she said.

"Approximately 18 months ago," Ruffcorn said, "residents of Columbia County noticed sexually explicit books in our children's library." She and others attempted to locate the local citizens who requested these books for the library, but found none. "As a former librarian, I, as well as others, began to protest," she continued. "However, the number of books only continued to grow in our small library to well over 100. We petitioned the board to move books, but no action was taken."

Ruffcorn informed the Chronicle that since the proposition was approved, some young adult (11-17) non-fiction books have been moved out of the basement, and dividers have been placed in the Children's Section. "None of these so-called fixes came about until this made it to the ballot," Ruffcorn said.

In the complaint, the NUP acknowledges that a new interim director was appointed, "who acquiesced and announced she would have the controversial books moved upstairs."

The suit also alleges that Ruffcorn is aligned with the CCC, an organization named "Moms for Liberty," which the Southern Poverty Law Center labeled as "an anti-government extremist group," and that she and her husband will soon "decamp for Texas." "Backed by the CCC, Ms. Ruffcorn has been the 'local' face of the library dissolution effort, but her tactics and talking points are unoriginal. Ms. Ruffcorn styles herself in the image of Moms for Liberty..." the suit claims. "Defendant Ruffcorn seeks to dissolve the Rural Library District simply because the only public library in this region does not align with her extreme views. On information and belief (and even more hypocritical) Ms. Ruffcorn seeks to dissolve this critical resource just before she and her family decamp for Texas."

"False," Ruffcorn told the Chronicle. "I had never heard of Moms for Liberty before this, I've never contacted them, didn't know they existed." She also denies any plans to move to Texas, pointing out that a conversation of hers about her parents' property in Texas was overheard and then took flight on social media. Ruffcorn has attended one CCC meeting where she was invited to make a presentation about the petition. According to Ruffcorn, the CCC has not voted to endorse the petition, although a few, who also happen to belong to the CCC, have encouraged her as individuals.

"I'm not a "Moms for Liberty", I'm not a CCC member, I'm just a pissed off mama bear," she said.

The NUP complaint asserts that Ruffcorn initiated the petition in February or March of this year, collecting signatures until June 15. "To get these signatures, many Columbia County residents were approached in public and told false statements about the Petition's substance and its effect," the complaint asserts. People who refused to sign were allegedly insulted, the document states.

The plaintiffs contend that "multiple witnesses" can testify that they were defrauded into signing the petition. A witness reports, the document states, that "Peggy James, a CCC member/donor and signatory to the petition, asked the witness if she'd "sign a petition to move the books in the library," claiming the petition was "...only trying to protect your children! (Emphasis added.) Witnesses attest that they were lied to in order to get signatures."

John Steinbrecher, a resident of Unincorporated Columbia County, drafted a letter to Auditor Hutchens seeking withdrawal of his signature from the petition because he felt misled by sponsors. His hand-written letter is an exhibit in the filing.

Nine signatures on the petition did not match county voting records, the NUP contends.

-File photo

Jessica Ruffcorn

"The current CCRLD is approximately 15 years old. However, for about 70 years prior to the formation of the district, the City of Dayton operated the Dayton Memorial library. When the City of Dayton gave their building and materials to the newly formed district, it was with a written agreement that in the event that the DISTRICT [Ruffcorn's emphasis] were dissolved, the Dayton Memorial Library building and the real property the building is on, the pre-annexation collection, all fixtures, and all equipment that is a part of the building and future Hedwig Davis, Peabody, and Delany Trust income would return to the City at no cost, so that the City could resume providing library services to the City of Dayton."

The NUP complaint acknowledges that if the district is dissolved, the building, real property, pre-annexation collection, fixtures, and all equipment, and "future Hedwig Davis, Peabody Endowment and Delany Trust income would return to the City of Dayton at no cost, so the City could resume providing Library Services to City residents."