An Arizona judge has dismissed all criminal charges against Rebekah Massie, a resident of Surprise, Arizona, who was arrested following a public comment at a city council meeting.
Massie was detained and charged with trespassing and criticizing a public official. Her action of questioning a city attorney’s pay raise allegedly violated a council policy.
The judge ruled that the charges were “objectively outrageous,” effectively ending the criminal case against Massie.
Charges Thrown Out
Justice of the Peace Gerald Williams made it clear that the charges filed against Massie in August were unconstitutional, asserting that the city government had crossed the line by trying to control Massie’s political speech.
Williams dismissed the charges “with prejudice,” which prevents the case from being refiled against her in the future.
According to Williams, the city’s attempt to regulate not only speech but the content of political speech was a violation of Massie’s First Amendment rights.
“No branch of any federal, state, or local government in this country should ever attempt to control the content of political speech. In this case, the government did so in a manner that was objectively outrageous,” Williams stated in his ruling.
