Los Angeles City Council members are poised to step up protections against unruly and potentially dangerous visitors to City Hall by extending trespassing laws to those who flout certain rules in municipal facilities. But the proposed ordinance, which is aimed at curtailing disruptions by certain members of the public, is raising a number of questions over First Amendment protections.
There is a fine line between free speech and harassment. At times, public officials say this line has been completely eroded, leaving them exposed to the rantings and ravings of lunatics. City News has covered some of the questionable incidents at L.A. City Hall in the past, including racially-charged threats against Council President Herb Wesson and alleged harassment that prompted a permanent restraining order request from Councilman Mitch O’Farrell. In another frightening incident, authorities confiscated a blade from an attendee who was dancing through the aisles and waving a stuffed bear during a city council meeting.
“This basically gives us the ability to maintain order,” Wesson said of the proposal. “You could have an individual now running up and down the hallway here hollering, and we could ask them to be quiet. Basically, this would say, ‘You’re trespassing, please stop.’”
But at least one attorney who spoke to the Los Angeles Times said the city council is taking a legal risk with its proposal. Eric Preven, a frequent visitor to City Hall and former candidate for mayor, also criticized the move.
“City Hall is the people’s house. We pay for it,” he said. “And so it doesn’t seem warranted to increase the penalty for breaking the rules when rules at City Hall are already famously politicized.”