Tuberville Wins Residency Suit Dismissal, Appeal Looms
Alabama U.S. Senator Tommy Tuberville has won another battle in the war challenging his legal residency to be the Alabama Republican Party's nominee for governor in the November General Election. Montgomery County Circuit Court Judge Brooke Reid, a Democrat and UA Law School graduate released her long-awaited ruling this today stating her court does not have jurisdiction in the case. She is the second county circuit court judge to make such a ruling during this election cycle. A Covington County circuit judge issued a similar finding earlier this year.
The first term U.S. Senator also prevailed in two challenges to the Alabama Republican Party Executive Committee by defeated GOP gubernatorial nominee Ken McFeeters
Tuberville's attorneys had made a motion for dismissal of a lawsuit filed by two voters, Brooke Dorgan and Justin LeBlanc, claiming the former Auburn football coach does not meet the constitutionally required seven-year residency to run for governor. They claim he lived in Florida and moved to Auburn too late.
The judge's ruling came after a hearing late last month saw the two sides present their case in Reid's courtroom in Montgomery. Tuberville's side argued the GOP nominee's residency qualifications are the duty of the party, not the court.
In a response from the Republican nominee's campaign, Tuberville's attorney's Joe Espy was quoted as saying, “The court’s decision today follows the Alabama constitution and the law that has been in effect for generations and generations.”
“Hopefully the court’s decision brings an end to all litigation. The decision on our next governor should not be up to any court, but rather the people of Alabama," he concluded.
Jordan Doufexis, Chairman of Sen. Tuberville's campaign issued a statement to media, “Doug Jones’ residency hoax just got sacked for a loss as a Democrat judge in Montgomery dismissed yet another desperate lawsuit from ‘DC Doug’s’ Democrat proxies.”
Plaintiff attorney Barry Ragsdale was not happy with the decision. “We are obviously disappointed with the Circuit Court’s ruling, but we have known all along that this matter would have to be decided by the Alabama Supreme Court. The public, and voters in particular, need to ask themselves why Senator Tuberville is so afraid of having this case proceed in court. If he really was constitutionally eligible for Alabama’s highest office, he should be ready, willing, and able to prove that in court, instead of cowardly relying on legal technicalities to avoid scrutiny of where he lives. Everyone who has viewed the credible evidence knows that Tuberville really lives in a $5 million gated mansion on the beach in Florida and not in that tiny house behind a strip mall in Auburn. We are confident that, if given a fair opportunity to present that evidence in court, we could easily establish that Tuberville is lying about where he lives and is ineligible to serve as Governor.”
Democrat gubernatorial nominee Doug Jones issued a statement as well, “Since our campaign began, we’ve been building a movement to win at the ballot box on November 3rd. Nothing about today’s decision changes our plan. It’s more than evident that Tommy Tuberville doesn’t live in Alabama, but the real issue is how out of touch he is with everyday Alabamians. While he’s focused on helping his powerful friends, we’re focused on lowering costs, strengthening our schools, saving rural hospitals, and making government work for the people. We will keep showing up for the people of Alabama every day.”
Today's court ruling is not the end of the challenge, Ragsdale plans to appeal it to a higher court.
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