Temporary Restraining Order Granted in KPFA Recall

August 1, 2012

For Immediate Release

Alameda Superior Court Orders Ballots Sequestered Until September 10th

Oakland, CA-The Alameda County Superior Court issued a temporary restraining order today enjoining the Berkeley-based Pacifica Foundation, the 501c-3 nonprofit organization that holds the license for Bay Area noncommercial radio station 94.1 KPFA-FM, from counting ballots in a member-initiated recall election of an elected board member. The restraining order sequesters the ballots in a secure location until a hearing scheduled for September 10th, 2012.

The restraining order was in response to a complaint filed on July 31, 2012 with the court requesting an ex parte hearing due to the record date used for determining member eligibility. The complaint was filed by the board member subjected to the recall attempt, Tracy Rosenberg, and a member who joined as a KPFA-affiliated member in December of 2011 and was not granted a ballot due to the early record date.

The order issued by the court states that Pacifica’s election supervisor will collect all ballots at 10am on Saturday August 4th and transfer them unopened to a secure storage facility pending further instructions from the court. The request for a temporary injunction will be heard on September 10, 2012 in Department 31.

KPFA listener representative and Pacifica Foundation representative director Tracy Rosenberg comments: “I am pleased the court recognized the concerns of my co-plaintiff, and the many she represents, about the constraint placed on their right to vote as members.

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