Overview
- Justice Elena Kagan wrote the opinion for a unanimous Court, reviving Gabriel Olivier’s case without deciding whether Brandon’s ordinance is constitutional.
- Olivier was arrested in 2021 after refusing to move to a designated protest area near the Brandon amphitheater, pleaded no contest, and received a fine and probation.
- The 2019 ordinance confines demonstrations to a protest zone roughly 265 feet from the venue, limits loudspeakers audible beyond 100 feet, and requires handheld signs.
- The Court held that because Olivier seeks only an injunction against future enforcement, his suit is not barred by the 1994 Heck v. Humphrey precedent.
- First Liberty Institute helped represent Olivier, the Justice Department and religious groups backed his right to sue, and municipalities warn the decision could spur more challenges to local regulations.