DENVER, CO — Yesterday, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit ruled in favor of NAACP Colorado, League of Women Voters of Colorado, and Mi Familia Vota in their case challenging a door-to-door voter intimidation scheme in Colorado. In its ruling, the Tenth Circuit corrected significant errors made by the district court and remanded the case for a new trial. The Tenth Circuit’s opinion clears the way for the plaintiff organizations to go to trial against all the named defendants—including against the United States Election Integrity Plan (USEIP), an organization that orchestrated the voter intimidation campaign in the aftermath of the 2020 election—in order to protect Colorado voters from intimidation and coercion.

The plaintiffs filed a lawsuit to block USEIP and three of its leaders from continuing to carry out a campaign of intimidation against Colorado voters. USEIP’s agents, some of them armed, went door to door to interrogate voters in their homes after the 2020 election, publicized their “findings,” and threatened severe consequences for anyone they believed to be involved in election fraud. The defendants obtained and used public voter lists to target specific communities in Colorado as part of this campaign, which undermined the plaintiffs’ efforts to encourage voters to go to the polls and forced them to divert limited resources to protecting voters from intimidation.

But before trial began, the district court ruled that USEIP could not be sued under either the Voting Rights Act of 1965 or the Ku Klux Klan Act of 1871 merely because USEIP had not incorporated as an organization. The district court then limited the evidence that the plaintiffs could produce at trial about USEIP and the leaders’ role in the organization and refused to admit a video in which one of the defendants told his audience that people “involved in election fraud . . . deserve to hang. Sometimes the old ways are the best ways.”

The Tenth Circuit now corrects these errors. It held that unincorporated organizations can be sued under these important voter protection laws, noting that one of the laws in fact was “enacted to suppress the violent actions of the Ku Klux Klan, an unincorporated association.” It recognized that the district court’s error narrowed the scope of evidence that the plaintiffs were allowed to present to the judge, and substantially influenced the outcome of the trial. The Tenth Circuit also held that the district court improperly excluded important evidence, that the plaintiffs were improperly denied the opportunity to be fully heard at trial, and that the plaintiffs are therefore entitled to a new trial.

“The Tenth Circuit properly rejected the idea that an organization that intimidates voters can escape liability by failing to file incorporation paperwork, and vindicated the plaintiffs’ right to be heard,” said attorney Courtney Hostetler, Legal Director of Free Speech For People, which serves as co-counsel for the plaintiffs. “The plaintiff voting right organizations have worked tirelessly to protect Colorado voters from a dangerous campaign to intimidate voters in their own homes, and we look forward to representing them in a fair and robust trial.”

The case will now be remanded to the district court, and the plaintiffs will be afforded a new trial against USEIP and the three individual defendants. The Tenth Circuit also dismissed the defendants’ attempt to extract attorney fees from the plaintiffs.

“The court’s decision sends a clear message. No individual or organization is above the law when it comes to voter intimidation,” said Kristen Clarke, General Counsel of the NAACP. “The right to cast a ballot free from fear or discrimination lies at the heart of democracy. We will use every tool available to hold accountable those who would seek to prevent lawfully registered citizens from voting and having their voices heard. At a time when communities across the country face threats and misinformation aimed at depressing voter turnout and participation — especially ahead of the mid-term elections — this ruling is an important step toward ensuring that Black voters and all Americans can fully and equally participate in our democracy.”

“This is a victory for every Colorado voter,” said Beth Hendrix, the Executive Director of the League of Women Voters of Colorado. “The court has made clear that voter intimidation is not beyond the reach of the law, and we look forward to a fair trial that holds accountable those who sought to frighten Coloradans out of participating in their own democracy.”

“For years, Mi Familia Vota has worked to ensure Latino voters and all eligible voters can participate in our democracy without fear,” said Héctor Sánchez Barba, President and CEO of Mi Familia Vota. “And the latest decision by a three-judge panel of the Tenth Circuit is a crucial victory for voters and for the integrity of our legal system. This decision sends a clear message that voter intimidation has no place in our democracy and credible claims of voter intimidation deserve to be fully heard. We welcome the Tenth Circuit’s decision to order a new trial so the evidence can be fully considered. Mi Familia Vota will continue fighting and standing alongside our partners to protect the fundamental right for every voter to cast a ballot free from intimidation, harassment, and fear.”

“The Voting Rights Act and the Ku Klux Klan Act were enacted to protect voters from exactly this kind of organized intimidation campaign,” said attorney Bryan L. Sells of The Law Office of Bryan L. Sells, who, with Free Speech For People, serves as co-counsel for the plaintiffs. “With this ruling, the Tenth Circuit confirmed that these laws mean what they say, and that organizations that send armed agents to voters’ doorsteps to interrogate them about how they voted will be held accountable.”

To access the Tenth Circuit’s ruling, click here.

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