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ACLU of New Jersey Defends Free Speech for Flemington Peace Protestor (12/15/2005)
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT: media@aclu.org
FLEMINGTON, NJ --
The American Civil Liberties Union of New Jersey today announced that it is
seeking the dismissal of a citation to Flemington resident Bob Flisser for being
part of a public vigil for fallen soldiers without obtaining a permit. In an
appearance before a municipal court, the ACLU said the Flemington "parade"
ordinance violates numerous free speech protections.
"Flemington's
ordinance is written so broadly that Christmas carolers, trick-or-treaters,
people tossing a Frisbee in the park, or even two kids skateboarding together
would have to obtain permission from the government to do so," said Fernando M.
Pinguelo of Norris, McLaughlin & Marcus, P.A. in Bridgewater, who, along
with Richard A. Norris and Jignesh J. Shah, are the ACLU of New Jersey
cooperating attorneys representing Flisser.
When Flisser received
word that peace groups around the country were holding vigils on August 17th for
fallen soldiers, he went to the police station to inform them that he would be
holding a vigil. The vigil was to be held at the sidewalk plaza on Main Street
in Flemington, a location where such free speech activities have traditionally
taken place in town. He anticipated that less than two dozen people would show
up and that the chosen space was large enough to accommodate his group without
blocking any right of way for
pedestrians, which it was. The police refused
to even consider his application on short notice (as they are authorized to do),
let alone decide whether to grant him a permit. Nevertheless, the vigil took
place as planned, about 40 people showed up, and Flisser was arrested and
charged with violating the parade ordinance.
"We shouldn't need
the government's permission every time we want to express ourselves in public,"
said Flisser, "especially when our activities don't block traffic or cause any
other disruptions." He added: "It's sad that when we expressed gratitude to
soldiers who gave their lives to protect our freedom, the Borough of Flemington
improperly took some of those freedoms away."
The so-called parade
ordinance threatens free speech because it covers much more activity than is
constitutionally permissible and makes no accommodation for spontaneous speech,
the ACLU said. It covers "any parade, march, ceremony, show, exhibition, pageant
or procession of any kind, or any similar display in or upon any street, park or
other public place." To be eligible for a permit, an application must be
submitted at least six days before an event. The Chief of Police can waive the
requirement apparently based on his unfettered discretion as the ordinance
provides no guidelines for deciding whether to grant or not grant the exemption.
The case is captioned Borough of Flemington v. Robert Flisser. The
hearing date for the motion to dismiss is to be set by the judge sometime in
early 2006.
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