L-R: Mayor McGinn, City Councilmember Mike O'Brien, Sightline Institute senior researcher Eric de Place, and Drew Paxton at an anti-deep-bore tunnel symposium last December.
As we just reported here, City Attorney Pete Holmes is suing the Protect Seattle Now Coalition for collecting what he believes is enough signatures to put the deep bore tunnel project to a vote:
http://www.westseattleherald.com/2011/03/29/news/pete-holmes-law-suit-a…
Named first in the suit was Drew Paxton, a Coalition Chair and a "Principal Signature Gatherer" according to the suit. The suit was filed just one hour after the Coalition handed the City Clerk's office the nearly 29,000 signatures gathered.
Paxton spoke to the West Seattle Herald to give his reaction, "It's a very new development," he said. "I'm a little shocked by it. I've never been sued before, and never been sued by the City.
"I'm not in any position of power," he added. "I don't even have a job for Christ's sake. They're not taking anybody down by suing me.
"Regardless of which position they take (on the tunnel) I think it's a perilous for any elected official to argue a position that denies the public a right to vote. The timing is ominous. Here's a guy who campaigned on being the 'people's' city's attorney, and now he's suing the people for wanting the right to vote."
