by Ron Gregory
ronjgregory@gmail.com
Charleston — Logan State Senator RIchard Ojeda is being sued in federal court, the Corridor Chronicle has learned.
A copy of the suit was provided to the paper and at least one other media outlet this evening.
In the suit, David Woolsey accuses Ojeda of violating his first Amendment rights. Woolsey is being represented by Union attorney John H. Bryan.
The narrative says Ojeda committed retaliation against Woolsey’s first Amendment rights on or about April 20 and 23 in Logan County.
Ojeda is a candidate for the Democrat nomination for Congress in the third district. In this suit, he is named in his individual capacity.
The suit says Ojeda orchestrated his retaliatory actions from his home on Bungalow Woods Drive.
The filing goes on to say that on Friday, April 20, as an employee of McCormick’s Furniture Store in Logan, Woolsey made $8.75 an hour to work as a laborer. Part of his duties included helping deliver furniture. He had a good relationship with store owner David McCormick at the time, the suit says.
On the same Friday, Woolsey and a co-worker, John Miller, left the store, heading to Huntington with a furniture delivery. To get to their destination, they traveled the rural, curvy Route 10. Miller was driving.
As they traveled, Miller told Woolsey a vehicle was approaching behind them at an extremely fast rate of speed. At that point, the suit says, a red, two-door Jeep Wrangler JK passed them in a no-passing zone with double yellow lines. Woolsey noticed the Jeep had “Ojeda for Congress” bumper stickers. It also had a vanity Senate license plate which read, “SAPPER. ”
Woolsey told Miller, “that’s Senator Ojeda.” The Jeep passed three or four more cars in no passing zones but no video was taken, the suit says.
Assuming Ojeda was involved in an emergency of some kind, the pair gave it little more thought until they came upon Harts Middle School and observed Ojeda placing a yard sign in front of the school.
Woolsey says he was not involved, at that time, in any political campaign. However, he admits a personal dislike for the senator based on a confrontation they had some time ago.
Eventually, Ojeda approached the McCormick’s truck from behind again at a high rate of speed. Woolsey pulled out his cell phone to video tape what happened.
That resulted in video, which Woolsey placed on social media, showing Ojeda again passing them in a no passing zone.
The suit denies Ojeda’s subsequent allegation that Miller kept speeding up and slowing down to elicit a response from the Senator.
Later that night, Ojeda made a social media post in which he promised to go to McCormick’s and report the incident to management.
The suit then lists six incidents of name-calling or threatening made by Ojeda. Woolsey denies them all but uses them in an effort to establish Ojeda’s malice toward him.
The suit alleges Ojeda went to McCormick’s the next day and spoke with David McCormick. On Monday, April 23, Woolsey was called to McCormick’s office for “interfering in a federal election, “the suit says. He was summarily fired.
The suit then discusses others who have since reported questionable driving to them by the senator. They cite an earlier national publication report that said Ojeda drove their reporter to the state capitol at high rates of speed.
Count one of the suit says Ojeda violated Woolsey’s first amendment rights and asks damages to be determined at trial; past, present and future pain and suffering; and other damages. Woolsey demands a trial by jury. The suit was filed in the Southern District court in Charleston.