City officials threw me in jail to silence me. Years later, I’m still seeking justice. – USA TODAY

The immoral doctrine of qualified immunity has so far thwarted my efforts to enforce my First Amendment rights.

Sylvia Gonzalez| Opinion contributor

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Comingfrom alaw enforcementfamily,Ineverhadissues with policein my life noteven atraffic ticket.As thefirst Hispanic woman elected to the City Council of Castle Hills,Texas, and having lived here for 20 years, my campaign issue was fair treatment for everyone,not justthe well-connected.

I was so happy when I won in 2019. Little did I know that soon after,crooked politiciansand their friendswoulduse the power of the government toviolate my constitutional rightsby removing me from office,and even throwing me in jail, becausecity officials didnt like being criticized for doing bad work.

That's not the end of my story, however. Because oftheobscureandimmoral judge-created doctrineof qualified immunity, my efforts to enforce my First and 14th Amendment rights havebeen thwarted by excessive delays.

During my campaign in 2019,Ivisited and spoke with residents inmore than 500 households and listened to their frustrations and complaints about City Manager Ryan Rapelye.

After the election, a few people who were unhappy with the results circulated an online petition supporting Rapelyeandgot about 150 signatures. This upset people who had voted for me, and they began to ask us to circulate a petition to reflect their concerns.

At myfirst council meeting, thepetition was turned intothemayor,whodidn't distribute the petition to the city secretary, as required, so copies could be made for all council members.

Asthe meetingwas about to start,thecityattorneytoldme Iwas nolongeron the councilbecause the sheriff, who had read me my oath at the council meeting, was not qualified to swear me in.

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Noonehadvoiced a problem at the time of theswearing-in ceremony, which was attended bythecityattorney, the mayor and theentireCity Council.A previous sheriff had alsosworn in other council members with no issue.

It was clear I was being harassed for doing my job on the council to report on the community's frustrations with the city manager, who was obviously well-connected.

In theJuly-August city newsletter, The Castle Hills Reporter, which is mailed to all residents and businesses in the city, Councilman Skip McCormick wrote an articledescribing how a City Council membercould be removedfrom office. He said they could beconvicted of a crime orby filing ofa lawsuit against the council member,whichsets up a jury trial a blueprint for what ended up happening to me.

With the help of friends, I hired an attorney and filed with the county court to getmyCity Council seat back.On July 18, aneighborcalled early in the morning and told my husband that the sheriff's deputies were about to serve me withan arrest warrant.After turning myself in at the detention center (where I spent the day in handcuffs), I discovered that the crime I was accused of by the mayor was "tampering with governmental record."

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The elaborate setup by cronies of the city manager was all over the news. I did nothing criminal, and the district attorney dismissed the charge that had been brought against me.

I had tospend my own money to locate and hire a criminal defense attorney.Meanwhile, aCastle Hills police officervisited thehomes of the people who had signed the petition.

I dropped the civil case because I couldn't affordit.My attorney sued for compensation of all the money Ihad tospend, and to be paid back for what they put me through. The matter was dismissedSept. 29 by the 4th Court of Appeals.

USA TODAY Opinion Series: Faces, victims, issuesofqualified immunity

The Institute for Justice agreed to file a federal lawsuit against the city of Castle Hills andhad a hearing beforeU.S. District Judge David Alan Ezra. The individual defendantsrequested that thesuit bedismissed on the basis ofqualified immunity, a doctrine that was intended to keep police and other government officials from being punished for reasonable acts while on the job, but which has ended up precluding plaintiffs from money damages to which they are legally entitled.

Judge Ezra denied the individual defendants qualified immunity, allowing my case to move forward. The city appealedthis rulingto the U.S. Court of Appeals in New Orleans, where we will meet Wednesday.

The mayor and his allies broke the law, violated the U.S. Constitution, ignored the people who voted for me and nowpleadqualified immunity to avoidresponsibility.My civil rightsweredeniedbecause I did not receive equal treatment under the lawand my right to freedom of speechwasviolated.I was arrestedand thrown in jailbecause the city officialswho didnt like the criticism against them decided their best move was to silence me.The rightto disagree with the government is the very essence of our democracy, and I was punished for exercising my right to do so.

Despite the extreme stress, I believe it is my dutyto stand upto try toensurethat othersare not silenced the way I was.

Qualified immunity must end. We must striveto hold government accountable, no matter how big or how small, and no matter whose rights have been violated.

Sylvia Gonzalez isa former city councilwoman of Castle Hills, Texas. She was the city's first Hispanic councilwomanandis the daughter of a retired police officer.

This column is part of a series by the USA TODAY Opinion team examining the issue of qualified immunity. The project is made possible in part by a grant fromStand Together. Stand Together does not provide editorial input.

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City officials threw me in jail to silence me. Years later, I'm still seeking justice. - USA TODAY