• by Wendy Davis  @wendyndavis, December 11, 2018

Outgoing Maine Governor Paul LePage will unblock critics from his Facebook page in order to resolve a lawsuit brought by the ACLU.

"This settlement is another step toward protecting free speech in the digital age,” ACLU staff attorney Emma Bond stated this week.

The settlement resolves a dispute dating to last year, when the ACLU sued LePage on behalf of Maine residents Karin Leuthy and Kelli Whitlock Burton.

The pair, who cofounded the progressive group Suit Up Maine, said they were banned from LePage's Facebook page in July 2017, after posting comments that criticized him or his administration. They alleged LePage violated their First Amendment rights by censoring them based on their viewpoints.

The settlement requires LePage's staff to unblock Leuthy and Burton, and to cease deleting comments or blocking other users, based on their viewpoints. The settlement terms will expire in January, when LePage leaves office.

Earlier this year, U.S. District Court Judge John Woodcock, Jr. in Maine allowed the lawsuit to proceed. LePage had argued that the case should be dismissed at a preliminary stage for several reasons -- including that the Facebook page was “personal” as opposed to official. He contended the page reflected his "private speech," and that he has a First Amendment right to decide what material to allow on the page.

The ACLU countered that the page was run by the government. Among other arguments, the ACLU said the page was labeled “official," and that LePage used the page to discuss government business with the public.

Woodcock said in August that the ACLU had presented a strong enough case that the page was official to move forward. But the judge also suggested that his view on that question may change as more evidence was developed.

Other politicians, including President Trump, have been sued for allegedly violating the First Amendment by blocking critics on social media.

Trump lost a round in court several months ago, when a federal judge in New York ruled that the president violates the First Amendment by blocking critics on Twitter. The Department of Justice has asked the 2nd Circuit Court of Appeals to reverse that ruling.