DeKalb Candidate Files Restraining Order Against Reporter

A reporter who says he was simply trying to get a political candidate to answer his questions was served with a temporary protective order on Monday preventing him from “stalking” Thomas Mitchell Owens, a GOP candidate for the DeKalb County Commission.

The restraining order came shortly after George Chidi of Atlanta published a critical profile of Owens on Peach Pundit.

Owens is running in a special election for the DeKalb County Commissioner District 1 seat following former commissioner Elaine Boyer’s resignation. District 1 serves north DeKalb County, including Brookhaven, Dunwoody, Tucker and Smoke Rise.

Owens, of Doraville, claims Chidi was threatening and harassing him, according to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. He said Chidi approached him in an aggressive fashion and never identified himself as a blogger or journalist.

“He was very threatening, bombastic and he wouldn’t identify himself as any type of reporter or blogger or anything,” Owens told the news outlet. “I don’t talk to anybody that threatens me.”

The published article came after Chidi attempted to interview Owens without receiving a response from him, according to the AJC. He said he approached Owens to interview him for a book he is working on about civic engagement in Georgia.

“I hadn’t approached him until he became a public figure,” Chidi told the news outlet. “He’s running for a seat that’s open because the incumbent has resigned and is going to jail for corruption charges.”

In a blog post Chidi wrote that Owens has every right to refuse comment.

“But if this is allowed to stand unchallenged, it sets a precedent that a politician receiving unfavorable press at a sensitive moment can use the power of the court to bar coverage,” Chidi says. “The word ‘chilling’ doesn’t cover it. It’s outrageous and dangerous and almost certainly unconstitutional.”

His published article, “Tom Owens, A Man Amok,” on Peach Pundit cast Owens in a critical light.

“Tom Owens is what happens when no one gives a damn about local government,” Chidi wrote.

The article details Owens’ past legal troubles, including the fact that the GOP candidate had three restraining orders filed against him in the past eight years, including a former fiancee who sued Owens alleging he financially abandoned their child in 1995.

Chidi told the Huffington Post he is worried what his case could mean for the future of journalists who write unfavorable articles about politicians -- especially those approaching an upcoming election.

“Imagine a politician who can shut off a journalist covering him in the month before an election when everybody is paying attention to politics,” Chidi told the website. “It is chilling. It makes it much more fraught to report on issues of public importance, particularly around politics.”

A hearing for the temporary protective order Chidi received is scheduled for Oct. 22.

>>GOP Candidiate for DeKalb County Commissioner seat for District 1, Tom Owens (left), has filed a temporary protective order against writer George Chidi (right). Photo Credit: Tom Owens campaign website and George Chidi Facebook.

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