Young Kwak photo
Donald Trump speaks at the Spokane Convention Center during his campaign rally in 2016.
On Wednesday, an Eastern Washington District Court judge dismissed a lawsuit filed by a Spokane Valley resident that attempted to disqualify former President Donald Trump from running for president in 2024 because of his participation in the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol.
The lawsuit's argument was based on Section 3 of the 14th Amendment, which says someone can't hold office if they have previously "engaged in insurrection or rebellion" as an elected official.
The obscure Civil War-era clause has gained increased attention from advocates and legal scholars over the past year. Advocacy groups and concerned citizens in a number of states have filed similar lawsuits that argue the clause disqualifies the former president from running for office again.
The efforts have so far been unsuccessful. Judges have dismissed cases in Minnesota, New Hampshire and Rhode Island. In Colorado, a district court judge said the clause didn't apply to the presidency, but did rule that Trump "engaged in insurrection." Colorado's state Supreme Court recently agreed to hear appeals in the case, and scheduled oral arguments on Dec. 6.
Stanley Bastian, chief judge of the Eastern Washington's District Court, dismissed the Spokane lawsuit on procedural grounds, and did not directly address the 14th Amendment arguments in his dismissal order filed yesterday.
"Plaintiff's Complaint concerns a hypothetical, as it is not certain that Mr. Trump will appear on the Washington presidential primary ballot," Bastian wrote. "As such, the Court does not have subject matter jurisdiction over Plaintiff's Complaint, and it must be dismissed."
Jennifer Laitinen, the Spokane Valley resident who filed the lawsuit, says she isn't deterred, and plans to try again later.
"When I see things that aren't right, I'm going to speak up," Laitinen says. "I'm going to say something. I'm going to do something."
While some of the efforts to block Trump in other states have been aided by organized advocacy groups, Laitinen says she filed the lawsuit largely on her own. She had advice from a few close friends, but no legal representation.
Laitinen says she plans to wait until there's further movement on some of the other legal cases pending against the former president before proceeding with another attempt to take him off the ballot in Washington. She argues that Washington state's candidate eligibility rules, in conjunction with the 14th amendment, make the former president ineligible.
"Hopefully everyone will see there are other candidates who are more qualified and better than someone who's going to cause possibly another insurrection," Laitinen says.
Laitinen has followed politics her whole life, and says she was motivated to file the lawsuit because of concern about violence stemming from Trump's election denialism. As a member of the transgender community, she says she was also concerned about Trump's hostility towards the LGBTQ+ community.
Trump isn't the only legal target Laitinen is eyeing. She says she also plans to file a lawsuit against Proposition 1 — the recently-passed ballot measure in Spokane that bans homeless camping within 1,00 feet of schools, parks, playgrounds and childcare facilities.
The proposition faced legal challenges earlier this summer, and the advocates who challenged the ban are still awaiting a final ruling form the state Court of Appeals.
Laitinen says she thinks the law violates the Constitution's prohibition on "cruel and unusual punishment." She says she's experienced homelessness herself, and doesn't want to see people pushed around with nowhere for them to go.
"What I tell people is, I do have a voice," Laitinen says. "It's hard for you to quiet my voice when I'm going to say something when it needs to be said."
