Stockman Threatening Legal Action Against Cornyn Campaign

This is something you don't see everyday. Rep. Steve Stockman is running in the Texas Senate Republican primary against incumbent John Cornyn. Stockman is threatening to press charges against anyone associated with the Cornyn campaign that publishes his mugshot.

According to Michigan Compiled Laws 28.214, "(3) A person shall not access, use, or disclose nonpublic information governed under this act for personal use or gain. ... (5) A person shall not disclose information governed under this act in a manner that is not authorized by law or rule. (6) A person who intentionally violates subsection (3) or (5) is guilty of a crime as follows: (a) For a first offense, the person is guilty of a misdemeanor punishable by imprisonment ... (b) For a second or subsequent offense, the person is guilty of a felony punishable by imprisonment for not more than 4 years ...."

Austin attorney Randy Cubriel, a Cornyn associate and head of TCM, may also face repercussions. Texas law (e.g., Art. 55.03 provides: "(1) the release, maintenance, dissemination, or use of the expunged records and files for any purpose is prohibited; (2) except as provided in Subdivision (3) of this article, the person arrested may deny the occurrence of the arrest and the existence of the expunction order; and (3) the person arrested or any other person, when questioned under oath in a criminal proceeding about an arrest for which the records have been expunged, may state only that the matter in question has been expunged.").

Stockman spokesperson Donny Ferguson wrote the press release for the Stockman campaign website. According to Ferguson, an unnamed Michigan official stated that Stockman could press charges against anyone publishing Stockman's 1977 arrest for possession of Valium. Talking Points Memo asked Ferguson for more details. Ferguson did not respond to follow-up questions.

What this illustrates is the war on drugs can destroy careers. Worse case scerario for Stockman is he loses the election and becomes a lobbyist. For other Americans a drug arrest or conviction could mean having a hard time finding a minimum wage job.