Following a flurry of policymaking that included extending concealed carry to the legislative floors of the Capitol, a group of protestors sued the state Friday over their right to carry banners and signs in state buildings.
In a lawsuit filed against the Wisconsin Department of Administration Friday, six protestors are challenging a state policy that prohibits carrying banners and signs in state buildings without explicit permission from the DOA. The six received citations during Capitol protests in March for holding signs inside the Capitol.
“In all cases the signs were examples of the pure expression of political ideas,” lawyer Jeff Scott Olson wrote in the lawsuit. “Several signs that led to citations simply contained (the) words of the free speech provision of the Wisconsin Constitution.”
Capitol Police issued each protestor a $500 fine. The citations have been dismissed by the Dane County District Attorney’s Office, according to the Wisconsin State Journal.
The Assembly Committee on Organization altered policy to permit concealed firearms on both the Assembly floor and gallery Thursday morning. An attempt to amend the proposal to also allow signs in the gallery by Rep. Peter Barca, D-Kenosha, was one of many efforts by Democrats to highlight both suggested similarities between the issues and apparently inconsistent policies.
“I’m going to be able to bring my gun [on the assembly floor], we’re going to be able to bring guns into the gallery,” Rep. Kelda Helen Roys, D-Madison, said. “That’s apparently not going to be a distraction. But it’s going to be a problem for people to hold signs, or wave a flag or wear a button. I just don’t know where this ends.”
A total 18 people were ejected from the gallery Thursday for disrupting and distracting legislators after repeated warnings from Speaker Pro Tem Bill Kramer, R-Waukesha, including a number of people for signs featuring Jesus, Mother Teresa and the American flag.
The gallery was cleared for good after a number of obscenities were directed at Speaker Jeff Fitzgerald, R-Horicon.
The DOA has yet to comment on the lawsuit, which names DOA and Capitol Police officials as defendants.
