Michael Ransbottom's story starts with a stolen 'IMPEACH TRUMP' sign.
Ransbottom, 38, says the sign was stolen in September of 2018. He replaced it with two new ones - only to have those stolen, too.
He reported the larcenies to Otsego Police, who told him it would be difficult to track down the thief without a description. But, it was something else that brought police to Ransbottom's home on September 28, 2018. An 'anonymous complaint.'
According to a federal lawsuit filed by Ransbottom and his lawyer Robert Levi, an officer told Ransbottom that their office had received complaints about the signs. The complaint led police to realize that Ransbottom was out of compliance with the city's sign ordinance.
Otsego City Manager Aaron Mitchell said the new sign ordinance went into effect in June of 2018. Residents may only have one sign up in their yard under the new ordinance, except during elections. Sixty days prior to and 10 days after an election, residents are allowed to have one sign per candidate or ballot issue.
"We don't want to limit anybody," Mitchell said on Jan. 9. "If you have five different people you're really excited about, you can have five different people that you support, but only one [sign] per candidate."
On Sept. 28, 2018, police told Ransbottom they'd need him to comply with ordinance or he would be cited for the violation. Ransbottom said he refused on grounds of freedom of speech. He was eventually issued a ticket.
On Jan. 2, Ransbottom and Levi filed a federal lawsuit claiming that the city's ordinance violated residents' first amendment rights.
"This is the first time it's been tested like this, and we are kind of figuring this out as we go," Mitchell said.
Both parties seem to agree that the issue is not with the content of the signs, which tend to be anti-President Donald Trump.
"It's not a partisan issue in my mind, it's an issue about an individuals ability to express themselves from their home," Levi said by phone.
Levi said he is especially concerned by the restrictions on both size (signs must be no larger than 6 sq. feet) and the limit of one sign per candidate or ballot initiative.
"The law says the most effective way to express something from your home is a yard sign," Levi said. The West Bloomfield based attorney said cases like this are the reason he went to law school.
"I feel very strongly about civil rights and that's what motivates me to be a lawyer," Levi said. "Helping the average citizen against powers stronger than her or him."
The city has suspended their enforcement of the sign ordinance, as well as the civil case against Ransbottom.
Mitchell said he is hoping to find middle ground, on the ordinance that he says was put in place for aesthetic reasons.
"There is nothing we see in here that's bad, but we are also trying to be reasonable and say let's reflect back at what we got," Mitchell said. "We're always looking to improve our ordinances."
Meanwhile, Levi says his client's front yard continues to be a target for theft. Levi says Ransbottom had an anti-fascist flag stolen from his property, on Monday.
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