ST. LOUIS — On July 2, the St. Charles City Council repealed an ordinance that violated First Amendment rights, and Mayor Sally Faith signed the paperwork making it official. Adopted in January 2011, Section 215.220 of the city’s code of ordinances was only in effect nine days before the American Civil Liberties Union of Eastern Missouri (ACLU-EM) won a temporary injunction on behalf of its clients, members of the Westboro Baptist Church. A preliminary injunction followed on Jan. 27, 2011.
“While city officials often have good intentions when they develop ordinances aimed at limiting the speech of one group, they don’t realize that they are infringing on the free speech of all,” said Tony Rothert, legal director of the ACLU-EM. “We are pleased the City of St. Charles Council recognized that this ordinance was unconstitutional and took action to repeal it.”
“Days after celebrating Independence Day, it is an appropriate time to remember that free speech is one of the core values on which this country was founded,” says Jeffrey Mittman, executive director of the ACLU-EM. “The government cannot prohibit speech at public places, no matter how vehemently the majority of the public disagrees with that message.”