A University of Wisconsin-Madison professor and the American Civil Liberties Union of Wisconsin are suing the state Department of Administration over its requirement that demonstrators in the state Capitol obtain permits.
The ACLU filed the lawsuit on behalf of Michael Kissick, an assistant professor in the UW-Madison School of Medicine and Public Health, saying the policy violates the First Amendment, according to a news release on the organization’s website.
Capitol Police began cracking down on protesters without permits in September, enforcing a pre-existing policy requiring groups to apply for a permit at least 72 hours before demonstrating in the Capitol.
The policy faced opposition from protestors and state Democrats for being unconstitutional even before it took effect in December 2011. At the time, DOA Deputy Secretary Chris Schoenherr said similar rules aimed at keeping the Capitol safe had already been in effect since 2006.
The suit aims to end the permit requirement and stop police from punishing demonstrators who do not have a permit.
According to the ACLU, protesters in the Capitol, including those that have never held a permit such as the “Solidarity Sing Along” group, “have been largely peaceful and non-disruptive.”
Additionally, courts have historically protected “even potentially disruptive political speech” under the First Amendment, the ACLU said in the release.
Kissick participated in demonstrations in the Capitol until the Capitol Police began citing demonstrators without permits, according to the release. However, Kissick has not done so since then, due to the fear of being ticketed or arrested.
“I resent being treated as criminal for speaking freely in a public forum,” he said in the release. “This country was founded on dissent, so I view myself as a proud American exercising my rights to engage in the most protected of all speech.”
Legal Director of the ACLU of Wisconsin Larry Dupuis said in the ACLU news release the permitting policy prevents citizens from expressing their views in a place where their political leaders exercise power.
“[It] burdens core political speech, which should receive the highest degree of First Amendment protection,” Dupuis said in the release.
