U.S. justices reject challenge to protest ban on Supreme Court plaza
Source: Reuters
The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday rejected a challenge to a law that hits the justices close to home: a ban on protests on the marble plaza in front of the courthouse where they hear cases and issue rulings.
The court left in place a 2015 ruling by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, which said the 1949 federal law prohibiting the protests does not violate the guarantee of freedom of speech under the U.S. Constitution's First Amendment.
The court often attracts protesters, particularly on days when it hears cases on hot social issues such as abortion or gay rights. Protesters are allowed to gather on the sidewalk in front of the courthouse but not on the plaza, which is considered part of the courthouse grounds and is reached by walking up several steps from the sidewalk.
A Maryland man named Harold Hodge challenged the law after being arrested in 2011 for standing in the plaza with a 2-by-3-foot (60-by-90 cm) sign hanging from his neck stating, "The U.S. Gov. Allows Police To Illegally Murder And Brutalize African Americans And Hispanic People."
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Read more: http://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-court-protests-idUSKCN0Y71I7
World | Mon May 16, 2016 11:42am EDT
WASHINGTON | BY LAWRENCE HURLEY
