The District 48 seat, which includes portions of north Fulton, south Forsyth, and northwest Gwinnett counties, was contested by Ramaswami against Still. In November, he received 54% of the vote and was reelected.
In order to obtain the identities of pupils at a nearby high school, Ramaswami filed a public records request during the campaign. He said in the lawsuit that the goal of obtaining student names was to identify young individuals who could cast ballots, make sure they were aware of the early and absentee voting procedures, and inspire them to get involved in civic life.
However, suspicious mailers posing as Ramaswami asking for private information about students at a nearby high school were sent out by Peach State Values, a political action organization that backs Senate Republicans.
“Call the Fulton County Sheriff’s Office if you or your teen is being approached inappropriately by creepy Ashwin Ramaswami,” one campaign mailer said.
Still claimed that at the time, regulations prohibiting campaigns from working with PACs prevented him from reviewing the mailers before they were distributed. However, he said that Ramaswami’s statement was altered several times and that his attempt to speak with youngsters created questions about his safety.
Bryan Tyson, Still’s lawyer, stated that they will attempt to get the lawsuit dismissed right away.
Still submitted a measure earlier this year that forbids political candidates or others working on their behalf from accessing public student records. Senate Democrats voted unanimously to pass the legislation after first opposing it and significantly changing its wording. In May, the new law became operative.
The case specifically criticizes the term “soliciting children,” claiming that Ashwin was not intending to have sex with children, since that is how the term is commonly used and understood.
Additionally, the lawsuit claimed that pictures from specific mailers were purposefully altered to portray Ramaswami as a pedophile.
“We simply don’t agree with that,” Tyson stated. Since Mr. Ramaswami’s Open Records Act request was consistently mentioned in the campaign mailer, it was always obvious from the context that he was asking for student information.
Furthermore, the lawsuit claims that Still knew the impressions he left were untrue and spoke negatively toward Ramaswami in order to harm him.
Ramaswami’s attorney, Bruce Brown, opted not to comment. Requests from the AJC were not answered by Ramaswami.
Along with other charges, Ramaswami is requesting that Still pay his legal bills and provide punitive damages.
