City's 'free speech zones' at issue

[The Northerner]

Dearborn — Even before controversial Florida pastor Terry Jones was jailed on Friday for trying to hold a protest in front of a mosque, Dearborn has had a complicated history with civil libertarians and free speech issues.

Legal experts said Dearborn's controversial ordinance that requires permits for protests outside "free speech zones" could be ripe for a court challenge. The ordinance already was rewritten because parts of the city's old law about public demonstrations were struck down by the courts.

Dearborn "has been down this road before," said Jessie Rossman, staff attorney with the American Civil Liberties Union of Michigan, which sued Dearborn in 2003 over a 1989 ordinance that required protesters to secure permits 30 days in advance.

The suit stemmed from a march held to protest Israeli policies shortly after Israeli soldiers entered a Palestinian refugee camp in the West Bank city of Jenin. The federal Court of Appeals sided with the ACLU in 2005.

Mayor John "Jack" O'Reilly Jr. said the ACLU's lawsuit led to changes in the ordinance in 2008, including creation of the free speech zones. He stood by the city's policy on Friday.

Read more: http://detnews.com/article/20110423/METRO/104230350/City’s-‘free-speech-zones’-at-issue#ixzz1KJvcKnyJ

[JCMach1]

1. Last time I checked, the whole damn country is 'supposed' to be a free speech zone

[Mnemosyne]

2. Used to be. Never even heard of these 'zones' until jr.** was pResident. Little

bastard and his cronies...