Judge acquits Durham protesters (school board again)

[struggle4progress]

The arrests of two people outside a school board meeting are declared wrong

By BENJAMIN NIOLET, Staff Writer

DURHAM -- Police and sheriff's deputies had no right to try to break up a boisterous protest outside a Durham school board meeting in April, a judge ruled Monday. He cleared two people of misdemeanor charges stemming from the incident.

Carol Walthour, a 64-year-old grandmother, was acquitted of assault on a government official, disorderly conduct and failure to disperse on command. Curtis Gatewood, 46, a Baptist minister, was acquitted of resisting, delaying or obstructing a public officer. The defendants said the charges were an assault on their free speech rights.

"The Constitution of the United States was on trial. Freedom of speech was on trial," Gatewood said after the judge's verdict. "Justice had a victory today." <snip>

http://newsobserver.com/news/story/2804791p-9248540c.html