Letter: Flawed logic and free passes

Using Todd Dorman's ('Auditor overreacts with order,” Nov. 1) and County Attorney Jerry Vander Sanden's ('No charges likely against auditor's rival,” Oct. 29) logic, all of my former opponents are hereby enabled to break election law because they ran against me in an election.

So that means Messrs. Abolins, Hill, Hanson, Fagerbakke, Gradoville, Houser, and Joe Stutler are hereby enabled to break election law because they ran against me in an election.

Further, Supervisors Brent Oleson and Ben Rogers are enabled to break election law because they are my political rivals.

One of the foundations of our state is contained in Article I Section 6 of the state constitution: All laws of a general nature shall have a uniform operation; the general assembly shall not grant to any citizen, or class of citizens, privileges or immunities, which, upon the same terms shall not equally belong to all citizens. I do not see anywhere in the constitution that former or present political rivals get a free pass on breaking election law. And that's what Dorman and Vander Sanden are doing for Stutler, giving him and the other Stutlers of Linn County a free pass.

Over 9,000 residents have voted in person in the Linn County Auditor's Office or at satellite voting places. Only one left the voting place to vote his ballot outside the voting booth, i.e., Stutler. And he got away with it because of the flawed logic of the county attorney affirmed by an opinion writer.

Thanks for treating me like a crime victim fellas. I guess I must have invited Stutler's behavior.

Joel Miller

Linn County Auditor