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CA8: Arrest for expressive speech without PC was a Fourth and First Amendmetn

By John Wesley Hall, Jr.

Plaintiffs’ arrest for a passive protest of “consumerism” was without probable cause. They were engaged in expressive speech, not disorderly conduct or even fighting words. Baribeau v. City of Minneapolis, 2010 U.S. App. LEXIS 3780 (8th Cir. February 24, 2010).* Two Hispanic women driving together on I-5 in California who stopped and switched cars was not reasonable suspicion. United States v. Vasquez, 2010 U.S. App. LEXIS 3737 (9th Cir. February 23, 2010) (unpublished)*: Here, the finding of reasonable suspicion rested on the fact that two Hispanic women in southern California switched cars twice and ultimately headed north on I-5. The exchanges between the cars took place in broad daylight. The government offered no facts suggesting, for example, that the officers found the types of vehicles suspicious or that the drivers or passengers acted in any evasive or unusual manner, or that the cul-de-sac particularly was known to house alien smugglers...continue to full post

Full post as published by Fourth Amendment on February 26, 2010 (boomark / email).