Olivier v. City of Brandon · ¶15

For anyone who has followed along this far, a description of Wooley should strike a chord. George Maynard viewed the “Live Free or Die” motto on his New Hampshire license plate as “repugnant to [his] moral and religious beliefs.” Id., at 707. So he covered those words with refective tape, in violation of a state statute. Maynard was convicted for that conduct three times over in state court, receiving (mostly suspended) sentences involving small fines and short jail terms. After the last proceeding had concluded—and presumably anxious that there not be a fourth—Maynard brought a § 1983 suit in federal court, seeking a declaration that the state statute violated the First Amendment and an injunction to prevent its future enforcement. New Hampshire argued, as its front line of defense, that the suit was precluded “because [Maynard] has already been subjected to prosecution” under the…

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