'It's the First Amendment, stupid.' Judge tells Florida to stop threatening TV stations

A federal judge ordered Gov. Ron DeSantis’ state Health Department to stop threatening television stations with criminal prosecution if they kept running ads in favor of an abortion amendment on the ballot next month.

In a sharply worded ruling on Thursday, U.S. District Judge Mark Walker rebuked the DeSantis administration for trying to quash what he called constitutionally protected political speech.

“To keep it simple for the State of Florida: it’s the First Amendment, stupid,” Walker wrote.

The ruling puts a temporary halt to one of DeSantis’ most brazen attempts to defeat Amendment 4, which would overturn the six-week abortion ban he signed into law.

On Oct. 3, the Florida Department of Health sent letters threatening to criminally prosecute television stations if they did not stop running an ad that features a woman named Caroline who was diagnosed with brain cancer two years ago while pregnant with her second child. In the ad, the woman says Florida’s six-week abortion ban would have prevented her from receiving a potentially life-saving abortion.

In the letters, the department’s then-general counsel, John Wilson, said the woman’s claims were “categorically false” and that the message constitutes a “sanitary nuisance” under state law that could put women’s health and lives at risk if it continued to be broadcast.

Wilson warned that if television stations did not take down ads, they would be committing a second-degree misdemeanor, which carries a sentence of up to 60 days imprisoned or a fine of up to $500. At least one station, WINK-TV, stopped running the ad, according to Walker.

Wilson abruptly resigned last week, writing in a resignation letter obtained by the Herald/Times that, “A man is nothing without his conscience.”

“It has become clear in recent days that I cannot join you on the road that lies before the agency,” Wilson wrote. His resignation letter did not specifically mention the letters sent to the TV stations.

Floridians Protecting Freedom, which is leading the Yes on 4 campaign, sued state Surgeon General Joseph Ladapo, claiming its right to free speech was being violated. The group sought a temporary restraining order.

The Department of Health letters noted that stations have a right to air political advertisements, but can’t air “false” political advertisements that “would likely have a detrimental effect on the lives and health of pregnant women in Florida.”

By that logic, Walker wrote, “any political viewpoint with which the State disagrees is fair game for censorship.”

The state can advocate against the amendment, but the First Amendment “prohibits the State of Florida from trampling on Plaintiff’s free speech,” Walker added.

Department of Health spokesperson Jae Williams said Thursday that state law protects the life of a mother and includes exceptions for victims of rape, incest and human trafficking. Opponents say uncertainty over the state’s law and the threat of criminal prosecution could mean that someone like Caroline may not have been able to get an abortion.

“The fact is these ads are unequivocally false and detrimental to public health in Florida,” Williams said.

The ruling followed a testy court hearing Thursday in which Walker said the state was wasting his time with “non-answers,” the Florida Phoenix reported.

Brian Barnes, a lawyer for the state, argued that Caroline’s statement might dissuade women from seeking medical attention for a pregnancy complication. He compared it to a theoretical commercial stating that the 911 emergency line is not working, according to the Phoenix.

Walker’s restraining order was a “critical initial victory,” said Lauren Brenzel, campaign director of Yes on 4.

“The court has affirmed what we’ve known all along: the government cannot silence the truth about Florida’s extreme abortion ban,” Brenzel said in a statement.