If you recall,
back in May, William Baer was arrested
after voicing opposition to a school
board meeting about a controversial book by Jodi Picoult titled Nineteen Minutes, a story about
a school shooting that contained pornographic content. It was also required
reading for ninth graders. Now a New Hampshire 4th Circuit Court of
Appeals judge has blasted the school board for "silencing" him and
arresting him, which was a violation of Mr. Baer's free speech.
In dismissing charges against Baer, Judge James M. Carroll said the
court "does agree with the defendant's argument that, often in an official
meeting or at the court, for that matter, individuals, from time to time, may
be disruptive, but the disruptiveness should not be cause for an arrest in the
first instance."
"The sequence of the arrest actions cause pause by the court as to
the chilling, if not silencing of a citizen by the state, for actions which do
not warrant a criminal arrest nor conviction. The court finds that the actions
for 'order' by the state do not 'balance,' in the facts of this particular case,
the speech rights of the defendant."
The court also
said that Mr. Baer didn't purposely cause a breach of the peace, and
furthermore dismissed the claim that Baer refused to comply with a lawful order
of a peace officer.
"The court
questions the constitutionality of the state's action in the sequence as
memorialized by the deposition," the judge wrote.
In other words,
the peace officer should have known better and he was actually the one in
violation of the law, not Mr. Baer.
The judge also
pointed out that the meeting was already completed and that there was no way
Mr. Baer had caused a problem for the board or those in attendance.
"The court
does not find the actions of the defendant to be criminal in nature which is
necessary in the ordering of restrictions on a citizen's liberties in First
Amendment considerations," the judge concluded. "The court finds that
the defendant's action never created a breach of peace sustaining a criminal
complaint."
Baer says that
in the time since his unlawful arrest, his and his family's lives "have
been in disarray." According to Baer, the Gilford Police Department, the
school board and the state of New Hampshire have targeted him like a common
criminal, but he is happy with the judge's decision in the case.
"I am
obviously pleased that all charges have been dismissed," Baer said. "Belknap County Judge James Carroll showed me there
still is some justice in our system."
Instead of
prosecutors taking the time and knowing the law and dismissing the case out of
hand, they took the months that led up to the hearing to continue their pursuit
of Mr. Baer.
"And what
about the incident that gave rise to all this?" he asked rhetorically.
"That is, Gilford High School requiring my 9th-grade daughter to read
material that is unfit to print in virtually any newspaper in the country. If
someone were handing out this material right in front of the classroom in which
students were reading the text, he would most likely be arrested, prosecuted,
and convicted for distribution of pornographic material to a minor. What about
a school system which cannot ensure that proper notice be given to parents of a
child mandated to read such material due to the school's 'oversight?' What
would you think if you found out that last year, when the book was also
required reading, the school administration and teacher made the same 'mistake'
and also failed to provide notice?" he said.
Baer then
theorized, "What about the chilling effect on First
Amendment guaranteed speech that these
arrests and prosecutions have on our society regardless of the outcome? How
many people will avoid speaking publicly knowing they can easily receive the
same treatment I did, and likely worse?"
School officials say that the book contains important themes, but
parents say that message is overshadowed by what some call pornographic content
on one page.
The book was assigned to students last Monday, but the school failed to
give parents of freshmen students notice of the sexually explicit content in
the novel. One page of the book contains a graphic description of rough sex
between two teenagers.
Some parents are outraged, and attended a school board meeting to make
their feelings known.
William Baer, whose 14-year old daughter is a student at the school,
was one of the parents who spoke out at the meeting. He was promptly arrested
for doing so.
Dane
cited a section of the book that was clearly pornographic and validates exactly
what Mr. Baer stated above. Yet, the concerned parent is the one forced to
defend himself while the school board and those that put this filth in the
hands of children are left unscatched, except by the words of and appeals court
judge. At least they got that!
Even Mr. Baer's
14-year-old daughter took a shot at the school board for their brazen, unlawful
behavior. I'd say dad taught her well!
I
would hope that Mr. Baer would pursue a lawsuit not only against the arresting
officer, but also the school board, the principal and any teacher that knew
about this and enforced it. And I would also hope that it wouldn't be about
money, but about bringing justice to bear, removing these people from their
jobs, never to work them again and facing prosecution in the same manner that
Mr. Baer did.
As a final
exhortation, parents, it's time you loved your child enough to remove them from
the public indoctrination system. I have
written about this on several occasions,
but here
is a good place to start. And now, it's
even easier to start than ever. There is a home
school education package, k-12, with the K-5 courses being absolutely free. All you have to do is have the desire to teach your kids
and you can save yourself and them the fate of Mr. Baer and other children in
the public school system. - from
Freedom Outpost
Source:http://eaglerising.com/12954/judge-blasts-school-board-unlawfully-arresting-concerned-father/
Comments
Phase out and close government
schools. Norb Leahy, Dunwoody GA Tea
Party Leader
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