The Supreme Court just ruled that Post Office Immunity extends to mail intentionally withheld by postal employees against orders from the USPS Inspector General. There is a racial element to the case but I don’t think that an important issue in the dispute.
My rant today isn’t just against Post Office immunity to lawsuits but the general tendency in the courts to uphold laws granting such immunity. I’ve discussed this issue from a wider point of view so I’ll stick with the specifics this time.
Post Office Immunity Examined
The Post Office is granted immunity from lawsuits involving missing, lost, and undeliverable mail. This is not unreasonable although I’m always skeptical of immunity protections. The basic principle is that if the immunity did not exist, the Post Office would be inundated with lawsuits over lost mail and have to prove such a general mistake without malicious intent.
Justice Thomas, writing for the majority, argues that this protection extends to the intentional nondelivery of mail and four of his colleagues agree.
The Case in Question
Lebene Konan owns several rental properties. One day she found her mailbox key changed so that she could no longer access the mail and deliver it to her tenants. The stated reason being that she was required to prove that she actually owned the property. She then provided the appropriate information but the situation was not resolved.
The USPS Inspector General intervened and ordered mail to be delivered. It was still withheld. Important mail including medication, bills, and other vital information was not delivered. Tenants, weary of the situation, moved out. Konan filed dozens of complaints and eventually resorted to a lawsuit which has been making its way through the courts for two years now.
Konan claims there is a racial element to the situation, she is black. That is unimportant to me but it does factor into the ramifications of the ruling.
Post Office Immunity Apparently Absolute
This case clearly means that Post Office Immunity to lawsuits is now absolute. Now, at any Post Office, if the manager doesn’t like you for whatever reason, that person can withhold your mail. They risk being fired, I suppose, but if they have the general support of their superiors, there can be no ramifications.
Conclusion
The Post Office is now legally able to stop delivering you mail because of your religion or lack thereof; your skin color, the fact that your children have a beef at school, because someone finds your spouse attractive and thinks you are undeserving of their love. Any reason whatsoever.
If anyone, outside of five Supreme Court Justices finds this reasonable, well, I don’t even know what to say. The law is now a tool of suppression, plain and simple.
Tom Liberman