Police Called After Transphobic Preacher Trolls Teens Outside High School

[Quixote1818]

[packman]

1. Holy hell - Too many nuts are falling off the trees

Kudos to the cops and how they handled this at the end.

[jberryhill]

2. Can someone explain why the police interfered with a person speaking on a public sidewalk?

[mahatmakanejeeves]

3. some thoughts

At the outset of the video, she was on a sidewalk adjacent to the school's driveway. That sidewalk might have been on school property, and the school official could ask her to go somewhere else.

After not too long, the principal (or equivalent) comes out to talk to her. At that point she was on a public sidewalk. AFAIK, she is free to say anything she wants while there. Naturally, if the principal has some concern about security, he can call the cops. For example, at the end of her rant, will she pull out an automatic weapon and start blasting?

But if she's no threat, then rant on. Were I a neighbor and I wanted some peace and quiet, I would want her to rant at a lower volume. I don't think she has to shout to get her point across. I'm pretty sure local noise ordinances have been written to comply with the First Amendment. I note she said that when she was done, she would "leave this town."

When she crossed the street, she was, according to one cop on Sunoco's property. So are the kids, but I don't see the cop talking to them. Selective enforcement there.

Had it not been the end of the school day, this would have been an excellent opportunity for a civics teacher to hold class under the nearby tree. Earlier in the day, the kids could have discussed the First Amendment.

Best wishes.

[jberryhill]

9. Yeah, I meant after she left the premises

If she wants to parade on a public sidewalk and shout, that's her business.

I also doubt the sidewalk on the school side of the street was school property, but they followed her over to what is definitely public property.

[sulphurdunn]

10. I think she needed to be reigned in

regardless of where she was standing or what her rights were. School was getting out, and a lot of kids were getting on buses and crossing the street. Many of them were paying more attention to her than to where they were going. Groups of students were gathering to listen to and mock her. Any school administrator would tell you the situation was ripe for things to get out of control and for someone to get hurt. She came to incite. I don't blame them for running her off.

[Quixote1818]

12. I think that is what it was more about. Someone off kilter around school children.

Anytime someone creepy starts coming around a school the administrators and police get concerned. If this was the city downtown, no one would care.

[Quixote1818]

13. First of all, she was around children and there was concern becaus she is clearly a whack job

She could have stood her ground based on her constitutional rights but she didn't. She bought the police line and it's not against the law for police to lie. Had she told them to screw off, there probably isn't much they could have done but she caved and followed their instructions. They also cited some kind of disturbing the peace ordinance which may or may not be true.

[negoldie]

4. No lawyer

I'm no lawyer but I think the police are wrong when they state the sidewalk is on private property. The right of Way of the road probably extends far enough to cover the sidewalks. I think the cops are wrong on this, but as I said I am no lawyer but I have dealt with road ROW's for thirty years as a surveyor, and the road ROW 99% of the time extends beyond the physical location of the road.
Someone with knowledge of the laws of New York might want to chime in.

[bucolic_frolic]

8. Free Speech right in central New York State

http://www.nyclu.org/regions/central-new-york/central_demonstrating_rights

Can't block a sidewalk. I'm thinking the sidewalk in front of a school is put there
for the school, paid by taxpayers for the school, and not inherently public, but
who knows. Constables have the leeway to make judgment calls. They don't want
an escalation, they are as concerned for her safety as about the noise and obstruction.
Surely the principals don't want a student to confront her.

No one can make someone else listen to their free speech. We can close our ears, ignore
them. The right to be silent and left alone.

[Quixote1818]

14. The police may very well have been lying because they were worried about the kids

but police are allowed to lie to people and test their knowledge of the law. If she had said they were wrong and she knew that particular part of the sidewalk was public property, there probably isn't much they could have done. The thing is she caved and left so the police didn't violate any laws.

[bucolic_frolic]

5. Cops handled it well

Cop does make the distinction between the public sidewalks and Sunoco property,
seems like the grassy area is still private school property, or maybe he leaves the
kids there because they're not ranting at high volume, or they sometimes buy things
there, who knows.

School officials just want her gone, don't need an incident.

She is hoping to accomplish what exactly? The kids are going to listen to her?

People like this create situations so they can feel rejected and downtrodden like Christians.
Hope she directs her energy toward productive goals. Maybe hand out pamphlets to the kids,
something they can read and think about. Gideons have it right, hand out condensed Bibles.
It might sit in a drawer for 20 years, but someone will read it.

[zebonaut]

6. Why isn't this classified as Mental Illness? Why does Religion get a FREE pass?

[liberal N proud]

7. Creepy Preacher

[Leith]

11. How the Heck Does Somebody Get to That Point?

What happens to people to bring them to the point where they will walk around shouting their version of religion (or anything) to others? It's wonderful that she has something like that to get her through her life, but what makes her think that she will convert others by looking and acting like she walked off the grounds of a mental health facility?