BROADVIEW HEIGHTS, Ohio – A local activist group that opposes oil and gas wells in residential neighborhoods has sued the state of Ohio and Gov. John Kasich in an attempt to stop drilling here.
Mothers Against Drilling in Our Neighborhood, based in Broadview Heights, says the city’s Community Bill of Rights – which voters approved in 2012 and which bans future wells – supersedes a state law that allows drilling.
The lawsuit, filed Thursday in Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Court, says the U.S. and Ohio constitutions guarantee the rights of citizens to govern themselves locally and protect their communities – in this case, from detrimental effects of oil and gas wells.
The lawsuit seeks class-action status, which would allow the activists to represent all Broadview Heights residents. It says the group has legal standing to sue because members started the campaign for the Community Bill of Rights and worked hard to pass it on the ballot.
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