Ohio Right to Life applauds a victory for the free speech rights of peaceful pro-life demonstrators(Columbus) An Ohio city will not appeal a federal judge’s decision that it violated the First Amendment rights of pro-life advocates when police officers threatened them with arrest for engaging in pro-life speech.
The case involved a July 31, 2007 demonstration by Missionaries to the Preborn. Members of the pro-life group stood on a public sidewalk holding pro-life signs and flags, and some had pro-life literature to offer to pedestrians. The demonstrators stood 15 to 50 feet apart on both sides of a street. The Tiffin Chief of Police told the demonstrators that they needed a permit and had to leave or face arrest. The demonstrators left, but later learned that there was no ordinance requiring a permit, and that the order to leave was based on an “All Events Policy” issued by the Mayor.
The demonstrators subsequently filed a complaint in federal court. In an opinion issued December 31, U.S. District Judge Jack Zouhary of Toledo held the policy to be unconstitutionally overbroad and stated that: “This permit scheme grants the City virtually unchecked discretion to deny permits for content-based reasons. There are no objective standards by which the City is bound when considering to issue a permit.” He concluded that under the policy “virtually any activity can be deemed an ‘event’ and require a permit.
“This is a victory for pro-lifers and everyone who values the freedom of speech,” said Ohio Right to Life President Mike Gonidakis. “Government officials should not be able to choose whether to harass peaceful demonstrators based on whether they prefer their message,” Gonidakis said.
The case is Trewhella v. Findlay.
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