A former Texas representative who was ejected from a Tarrant County Commissioners Court meeting in August and subsequently arrested is suing the county and Judge Tim O’Hare in federal court, according to court documents.
O’Hare ordered Lon Burnam removed from the Aug. 4 meeting when the 73-year-old picked up the microphone — in an alleged violation of the meeting rules — during his one minute of public comment. Burnam said he was protesting O’Hare’s removal of another public speaker for handling the microphone when the incident occurred.
The former state representative lay down on the floor in what he described as “nonviolent resistance,” and deputies from the Tarrant County Sheriff’s Office had to carry him out. Burnam alleges that O’Hare violated his First Amendment rights and claims that the county has repeatedly used its authority to silence “critical speakers,” according to the lawsuit.
Burnam’s complaint was filed Sept. 11 in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas.
The day of Burnam’s arrest, the commissioners were discussing cutting the number of polling locations for the Nov. 3 midterm election. O’Hare removed one man during public comments for picking up the microphone.
The former state representative said in the court documents that he’d understood the man is autistic and had previously received permission to handle the microphone. Burnam felt O’Hare treated the speaker unfairly and decided to protest.
The 73-year-old defended his behavior at the meeting, stating in the lawsuit that he “did not damage the microphone, threaten anyone, strike anyone, block the proceedings, attempt to obtain a second speaking turn, or prevent another speaker from being heard.”
Burnam has been charged with disrupting a meeting and disorderly conduct. His defense attorney, Tiffany Burks, filed a motion on Sept. 9 seeking to dismiss the charges.
Former Texas Rep. Lon Burnam is kicked out and arrested during public comment at a Tarrant County Commissioners Court meeting on Tuesday, Aug. 4, 2026 in Fort Worth. Abigail Dollins Fort Worth Star-Telegram
Burnam was previously removed from a Tarrant County Commissioners meeting on July 2, 2024. According to the lawsuit, he approached O’Hare after the public portion of the meeting and criticized him for his alleged treatment of Commissioner Alisa Simmons. Burnam states that he observed O’Hare cut off Simmons and declare her out of order while she was questioning county staff.
A week later, Burnam was given a criminal-trespass warning and forbidden to enter Tarrant County property, but “its duration and scope were not adequately explained,” according to the lawsuit.
“The July 2024 events are alleged as evidence of motive, intent, notice, municipal custom, and the relationship between Plaintiff’s criticism and subsequent exclusion,” the lawsuit states.
Burnam is requesting compensatory damages and a ruling declaring that the actions taken against him Aug. 4 violated the First and 14th amendments, according to the complaint.
He also asks that a judge declare the county’s rules of decorum unconstitutional since “they were used to suppress protected criticism or impose exclusion without an actual material disruption,” the lawsuit states.
In a separate lawsuit, filed Sept. 9 in Tarrant County, Burnam seeks to remove O’Hare from office on the grounds of official misconduct and incompetency.
According to the petition, Burnam alleges that he’s observed O’Hare interrupt or remove speakers who’ve criticized him or the Commissioners Court. He’s also “administered public-comment rules harshly and inconsistently,” the lawsuit states.
Ruth Ray, a spokesperson for O’Hare, alleged in an emailed statement Wednesday that Burnam showed up “with plans to disrupt the meeting.”
“He refused to follow the duly adopted rules of decorum, which he has done repeatedly,” the statement reads. “He then refused to leave and dropped to the floor, so deputies had to carry him out. Now, two months before Election Day, he wants a judge to overturn an election and couldn’t even clean the AI links out of his pleading. This is a sad political stunt. It won’t work.”
Leah Nesbitt, another O’Hare spokesperson, previously said the county’s decorum policy exists to allow as many voices as possible to be heard at meetings in an orderly manner.
“These rules do not silence passionate or critical voices,” Nesbitt told the Star-Telegram in August. “Maintaining order is necessary to serve all constituents efficiently and effectively.”
This story was originally published September 15, 2026 at 2:51 PM.
Related Stories from Fort Worth Star-Telegram
Fort Worth Star-Telegram
Harriet Ramos covers crime and other breaking news for the Fort Worth Star-Telegram.