(Bloomberg)
We go through life thinking the First Amendment is followed in the U.S. In practice, that isn’t always true. A case in point is that of Gunther Glaub, who was convicted and sentenced to five years’ probation for a quirky protest in which he sent the bill for his new Chevrolet Camaro to the U.S. Department of Agriculture — and scribbled on it, “Thank you for paying this debt.”
Astonishingly, prosecutors went after Glaub on the theory that sending the government this invoice and a few other bills, including one for his wife’s student loan and another from his credit union, violated the federal law against submitting false claims to the government. I wrote about the prosecution in 2016, urging the federal district court to throw out the case.
It didn’t. A Colorado jury convicted Glaub of five felony charges of submitting false claims to the government after a trial in which the jury wasn’t told by the judge that his actions might be protected free speech. The prosecutors sought a prison sentence, but the judge imposed the lengthy probation, a fine and community service. Now, more astonishing still, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 10th Circuit upheld the conviction in an opinion that is a masterpiece of legal double talk. What remains for Glaub is only a last ditch try to get the U.S. Supreme Court to take note — a legal maneuver that’s the equivalent of a Hail Mary pass, given that the 10th Circuit didn’t so much make new law as ignore the law as it exists. Read more