North Dakota Lawmaker to be Reimbursed Attorney Fees for Lawsuit Over her Facebook Page

State Sen. Janne Myrdal, R-Edinburg, speaks on the House floor during a meeting of the Legislative Management Committee on Nov. 14, 2024. (Michael Achterling/North Dakota Monitor)

(Mary Steurer – North Dakota Monitor) – North Dakota lawmakers voted  to reimburse Sen. Janne Myrdal for the nearly $50,000 the senator spent defending herself after a constituent sued her for blocking him on Facebook.

The motion was brought by Senate Majority Leader David Hogue, who said lawmakers should not have to suffer financially because of frivolous legal attacks.

“I think it’s appropriate that we as legislators protect one another from these forms of harassment,” the Minot Republican said during a Thursday Legislative Management meeting.

Myrdal was sued in May 2023 by Park River resident Mitchell Sanderson, who is in her district. Sanderson said in legal filings that Myrdal had violated his First Amendment rights by blocking him from her Facebook page — and that Myrdal had only done so because she disagreed with his political beliefs. He asked for $100,000 in compensatory damages and $100,000 in punitive damages, as well as for Myrdal to be ordered to unblock him.

A state district court judge dismissed the lawsuit earlier this year, finding that the Edinburg Republican had acted as a private citizen, not a representative, when she blocked Sanderson and therefore had not violated his rights. Sanderson was ordered in December 2023 to reimburse Myrdal for $4,975, the majority of which came from attorneys fees. That order came before Sanderson appealed the case to the North Dakota Supreme Court.

The higher court last week upheld the district court’s decision.

Myrdal said Thursday that the case cost her exactly $48,000.

“In North Dakota, we’re part-time lawmakers. We’re not on a salary. We make per diem when we show up here, and then we go back and we live like everybody else,” Myrdal said, adding that $48,000 is a “large amount” for her family.

Hogue said Thursday if Sanderson pays the $4,975 judgment, that would be deducted from Myrdal’s reimbursement from the Legislature.

Myrdal asked to be recused from voting on Hogue’s motion. The motion passed by a 10-4 vote, with the four Democrat members of the committee voting no.

Senate Minority Leader Kathy Hogan, D-Fargo, asked during Thursday’s meeting if the Legislature has ever done anything like this before, or if there are any relevant policies or procedures lawmakers could look to for guidance.

Hogan also asked whether or not this action would violate language in the North Dakota Constitution that forbids the gifting of public money.

“I’m concerned about this as precedent, and where it may lead,” she said.

Legislative Council Director John Bjornson said he did not have an immediate answer to Hogan’s questions, but that he would look into the matter.

Hogue said he did not believe the payment would violate the state constitution because the Legislature would be reimbursing Myrdal for expenses incurred in her position as a lawmaker.

House Majority Leader Mike Lefor, R-Dickinson, also supported the motion.

“It’s difficult to recruit people to serve in the legislative assembly, and if we have the opportunity to defend our branch of government, we should do so every time,” Lefor said during the hearing.

Sen. Josh Boschee, D-Fargo, said he was conflicted about the motion. He questioned whether it should be the state’s role to defend Myrdal if the courts found she had been acting as a private citizen, not a lawmaker, when she blocked Sanderson from her page.

“As someone who may have found themselves in this position, I’d certainly be asking for reimbursement, too,” Boschee said. “But if the legal argument was I was acting in my personal capacity, not as a lawmaker, why would I as a lawmaker be able to … reimburse for the cost of the legal expenses associated with it?”

Lefor replied that if Myrdal was not a senator, she wouldn’t have been sued in the first place.

Hogue said North Dakota should have done more to defend Myrdal from the outset. He referenced a similar case where a Missouri lawmaker blocked a critic on Twitter.

“The different part about her case is that the state stepped forward from the outset and defended her with state resources,” Hogue said.

North Dakota did not provide that same support to Myrdal, he noted. Hogue said the state eventually intervened in the case and provided “partial representation” to Myrdal, but that she incurred roughly $48,000 before that happened.

Emily Thompson, legal division director for Legislative Council, said the money will come out of the Legislative Assembly’s existing funds.

Hogue said he has taken the issue up with Attorney General Drew Wrigley.

“The legal system is not in place to be abused by those who would weaponize it against public servants acting in their private capacity,” Wrigley said in a statement to the North Dakota Monitor on Thursday. “Where deemed appropriate to do so, the state of North Dakota will vigorously defend officials and state employees against such abuses.”

Michael Achterling contributed to this report.