Joe “the plumber” Wurzelbacher is suing three Ohio officials for illegally searching his records after he rose to prominence for asking Barack Obama an inconvenient question during the presidential campaign. One might think that he has a slum-dunk case, since the Ohio Inspector-General already determined that the search was illegitimate, but under the doctrine of official immunity it’s not so clear. They might be held to be immune from lawsuits for any misconduct perpetrated in an official capacity.
I’m also surprised that the suit targets specifically those who searched Wurzelbacher’s records at the Department of Job and Family Services. Five other Ohio departments investigated him, including the Ohio Attorney General’s office. Why aren’t they also being sued?
Internet Scofflaw 