The 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has rejected former state Rep. Fred Smith’s appeal of the dismissal of his lawsuit against the state Democratic Party over actions leading to his resignation from the legislature in 2011.
Smith, of Crawfordsville, was elected to the House in 2010, then resigned his seat early in the term because of a conviction related to use of funds by the Dermott School District. That conviction later was vacated and Smith successfully ran for office as a Green Party candidate after the Democratic Party sued to keep him off the ballot in 2012 as a Democrat. He lost a race for re-election in 2014.
Smith sued the Democratic Party for damaging his reputation and pressuringhim to resign from the legislature in 2011. Federal District Judge Price Marshall rejected the claim. Smith appealed and the 8th Circuit said in a brief order this week that the district court “appropriately disposed of Smith’s claims.”
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