Written by Don Byrd
Via Religion Clause, the 6th Circuit has agreed to re-hear an appeal in the case of Christian evangelists who police ordered to leave the Dearborn, Michigan, Arab Street Festival out of concerns for violence. Earlier this year, a panel of appeals court judges affirmed the dismissal of the evangelists’ complaint, emphasizing that their confrontational methods of proselytizing were “intended to incite the crowd to turn violent,” and that restricting their speech was the only way to quell the violence.
Now, the entire 6th Circuit will re-hear the appeal. First Amendment advocates voiced concern about the ruling, which essentially allows the police to restrict protected speech because “hecklers” violently disagree. The dissent in the case argued the police did not do enough to control the crowd, and found their approach incentivizes violent behavior.
