Nassau County exec tears into Dems, demands they pay legal bills for trying to stop armed volunteer program
The Republican argued in a newly filed counterclaim that the suit from two Democratic legislators was an attempt to 'punish, intimidate and harass' him over the deputy program, which critics have called a 'militia.'
'They brought a lawsuit against me to try to get me to not speak out about issues I think are important,' Blakeman said in a statement. 'They are trying to violate — not only my rights as an individual citizen — but my rights as county executive to represent the people of Nassau County.'
Blakeman's attorneys said the lawsuit qualifies as a Strategic Lawsuit Against Public Participation, or SLAPP, and they're now asking for a judge to toss the case and force the Dems to pay his legal fees.
The first court hearing is set for June 19 in state Supreme Court in Mineola — a high-stakes showdown that could set precedent for how far local governments can go in enlisting armed civilians for public safety efforts.
Last year, Blakeman announced the plan and said all he's done is create a database of potential volunteers who were vetted and trained to assist in 'very extreme circumstances' when county police are overwhelmed.
Blakeman claims the program is fully legal and rooted in public safety concerns — but critics like county Legislature Minority Leader Delia DeRiggi-Whitton blasted the force as a 'militia,' comparing them to untrained Nazi civilian forces.
'There was something called the brownshirts, which was basically having civilians all of a sudden become part of law enforcement without the training,' she said, comparing the policies.
The lawsuit filed Feb. 4 by Democratic Legislators Debra Mulé and Scott Davis argued Blakeman violated municipal law by unilaterally creating the 'provisional special deputies program' using public funds — and then stonewalling FOIL requests for basic information about how it works.
The suit claims the program includes expenses that qualify as illegal spending of taxpayer money — including shelling out funds for background checks, conducting random drug screening, providing training, and a $150-per-day stipend when they are activated.
Carey Dunne, attorney for Mulé and Davis, slammed Blakeman's SLAPP counterclaim as a dangerous overreach, and said the case could have sweeping consequences nationwide if Blakeman's argument gains traction.
'You can't have political actors in this country allowed to sue private citizens for exercising their constitutional rights,' Dunne said, noting that while the plaintiffs are lawmakers, they filed as private residents and taxpayers.
'The initial impetus for filing the lawsuit was to discourage the government from creating a private militia. Now there are two dimensions to this case,' Dunne said. 'If that [SLAPP argument] were to take hold, that would be a serious setback for civil liberties.'
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