On The Front Lines
Parks and Recreation Officials Charged With Silencing Free Speech, Censoring Religious Expression in Public Places
Rutherford Institute Attorneys File Suit in U.S. District Court Against Ocean County OfficialsTrenton, N.J.--Attorneys for The Rutherford Institute have filed a lawsuit in U.S. District Court for New Jersey on behalf of Carmine Sauchelli, of Bayville, N.J., who was unlawfully prohibited by county officials from handing out religious material in a public park. Institute attorneys insist that public parks have always been forums for free speech, whether that speech takes the form of speaking, worshipping, or handing out literature, and cannot be closed at the discretion of county officials.
According to Ocean County's guidelines for the distribution of handbills and advertising matter on park property, requests to distribute materials must be made in writing to the Director of Parks and Recreation, who has sole discretion to accept or deny such requests. In the fall of 2001, Carmine Sauchelli twice requested permission from Ocean County officials to distribute religious literature in Berkley Island County Park in Ocean City, N.J. On both occasions, county officials denied his request, stating that "[a]lthough the right to freedom of speech is certainly applicable within the Parks' system, it is not absolute and may be subjected to restrictions." In justifying their refusal to allow Sauchelli to distribute religious literature in the park, county officials reasoned that their regulations serve a government interest that is "designed to promote peace, tranquility, order and respect within the park system." In clarifying the county's position on distribution of materials, Dean Chlebowski, the deputy director, revealed that, in fact, "[i]t has been [the county's] long-standing policy not to permit the distribution of literature at any of our facilities, whether religious, political or commercial advertisements." Sauchelli then contacted The Rutherford Institute for help in defending his First Amendment and Fourth Amendment rights. Institute attorneys charge that by closing a public place to a traditional and protected form of speech, the county violated Sauchelli's First Amendment rights to free speech, free exercise of religion, and association, and his due process and equal protection rights under the Fourteenth Amendment.
"Ocean City's attempt to close the park to protected free speech is an outrageous violation of the First Amendment rights of all Ocean City residents. The right to seek to change minds and hearts on public issues in public places has been clearly established throughout American history," said John W. Whitehead, president of The Rutherford Institute. "Public parks are sacred ground, and the ability to discourse in such places is indispensable to an informed democracy."
The Rutherford Institute is an international, nonprofit civil liberties organization committed to defending constitutional and human rights.
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