Maine labor mural case goes to appeals court
PORTLAND, Maine (AP) — Oral arguments are being heard in a challenge of a judge's ruling that Maine Gov. Paul LePage was within his rights when he had a mural depicting the state's labor history removed from a state office building.
The 1st Circuit Court of Appeals in Boston is hearing arguments in the case Monday.
LePage created an uproar last year when he ordered the 11-panel, 7-foot-tall mural removed from a Labor Department waiting room because he considered it biased in favor of organized labor over business interests.
Five Mainers, including three artists, filed a lawsuit claiming the removal violated the mural artist's First Amendment rights.
The appeal argues that federal Judge John Woodcock erred when he agreed that the LePage administration was within its rights in removing the mural.
