PA town must pay $100,000 for threatening to ‘out’ teen

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Sept. 12— A settlement in the shocking case of a teenager who committed suicide after two police officers threatened to “out” him to his family sends a clear message to government officials to stay out of the private lives of lesbian and gay teenagers, the American Civil Liberties Union said today. 

“No amount of money can replace what our client lost because of the actions of the police, but in paying this settlement the police department is acknowledging the role it played in Marcus Wayman’s death,” said David Rudovsky, who represented Wayman’s mother Madonna Sterling as a cooperating attorney for ACLU. “And an important part of Marcus’s legacy is the message that his case sends to government officials that they must respect young people’s privacy about their sexual orientation,” he added.

The $100,000 award brings to a close a lawsuit filed by the mother of Marcus Wayman, a rural Pennsylvania high school football player who was in a parked car with a 17-year-old male friend when police questioned the two, found condoms while searching the car, and arrested them for under-age drinking. At the Minersville police station, officers lectured the two teens about the Bible’s condemnation of homosexuality and threatened to tell Wayman’s grandfather that he was gay. After the 18-year-old Wayman was released from police custody, he went home and shot himself in the head. Sterling sued the town and the officers for police misconduct, discrimination and violation of the right to privacy.

In an earlier ruling in Sterling’s case, the Third Circuit Court of Appeals in Philadelphia ruled that police violated Wayman’s constitutional rights when they threatened to tell his family that he was gay. The court rejected the argument that lesbians and gay men are not protected by the right to privacy, and ruled instead that “[i]t is difficult to imagine a more private matter than one’s sexuality...” The police officers had asked the federal appeals court to let them out of the case on the basis that it was not clear that the right to privacy protects lesbians and gay men. The appeals court denied that request and sent the case back to the lower court for a trial, which ultimately resulted in the settlement.

“We hope Marcus’s family can take some comfort in knowing his case has already affected the lives of other gay teens. It tells law enforcement officials as well as guidance counselors and teachers that they can’t reveal someone’s sexual orientation without facing serious financial consequences,” said James Esseks, Litigation Director of the ACLU Lesbian and Gay Rights Project. ”We’ve already used the precedent set in this case to help a boy in Arkansas whose school outed him to his parents, and we won’t hesitate to use it again whenever a government official violates a young person’s right to keep his or her sexual orientation private.”

In the Arkansas case, school officials had “outed” 14-year-old Thomas McLaughlin to his parents without his permission, made him read from the Bible, and disciplined him for talking about his sexual orientation and later for talking about that punishment. An ACLU lawsuit relying in part on the ruling in Wayman’s case brought about a cash settlement for McLaughlin and important policy changes throughout his school district.

Source: ACLU

Miami passes ‘anti-protester’ laws for Nov. FTAA meetings

Compiled by John Lapp

Sept. 17 (AGR)— When the estimated 20,000 to 100,000 people descend on the streets of Miami to protest the meetings of the Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA) in November, they won’t be allowed to carry supersoakers, water-filled balloons, marbles, or bullhorns. They might also get arrested if the sticks on their signs are too large or if their posters are a bit too thick.

The restrictions are part of a proposed law that would give sweeping powers to the Miami Police Department when trade ministers from 34 countries in the Americas gather in Miami Nov. 17-21. City commissioners voted to tentatively approve the law, which police contend is needed to help officers clamp down on protesters who intend to disrupt the trade meetings. The measures, which limit what protesters can take to a rally or gathering, also ban rifles, slingshots, hatchets and other “instrumentality customarily used or intended for probable use as a dangerous weapon.” A final vote is expected on Sept. 25. If passed, the law will be in effect only until Thanksgiving Day, a move city commissioners took after civil liberties advocates complained that the law would have a long-lasting and chilling effect on freedom of expression in Miami.

Police said that though they are not sure how many demonstrators will turn out, they expect only two percent to be violent. The events will be important to the city’s image, said Police Chief John Timoney. Miami is trying to become the headquarters of the FTAA. Timoney has already gained a sort of infamy for his pre-emptive arrests of hundreds of activists in Philadelphia during the Republican National conventions in 2000.

“This will send a message to those groups who want to come here and create chaos that we did tailor one law specifically for them,” said Commissioner Tomás Regalado. “So don’t mess with us.” Authorities are describing their actions as “subtle but effective,” with lots more police on the streets but mainly dressed in their usual attire, not in bulletproof vests and riot gear.

“We don’t want to create the perception of a military takeover,” Miami police Lt. Frank Fernandez told the meeting.

In addition to the new laws, the city of Miami is investing in ProActConcept barricades. These fences are designed to be virtually indestructible and impossible to scale. similar fencing was employed during the most recent anti-IMF protests in Washington, DC in April. This kind of security comes at a price: $24 per linear foot. Police requested, and the city commission approved, leasing about 5,000 feet of the fencing.

Civil liberties leaders who opposed the earlier version said they had even more reason to object to the proposed law as amended, because it now targets a specific group.

“They’re creating a problem by not dealing with these people as they would with any other organization,” said Joseph Averill, a Miami attorney who has long dealt with constitutional issues. “They may have an invalid ordinance, so if they arrest people pursuant to that ordinance, these people could sue for an invalid arrest.” Critics also charge that police officers will be able to use the ordinance to selectively enforce the law and arrest certain people.

“They have the right to protest. Free and open dialogue and peaceful demonstrations are allowed and planned for,” says Luis Lauredo, former US ambassador to the Organization of American States (OAS) and executive director of Miami FTAA, the local group organizing the event. “But the right to express your views stops at the point where it infringes on the rights of others.”

Many activists consider such remarks ironic due to the fact that the FTAA is making decisions that pertain to an entire hemisphere without consulting the populace of the region.

“Our plans are entirely peaceful,” said Karen Hansen-Kuhn, of the Hemispheric Social Alliance, a coalition of more than 100 labor unions and citizens groups across the Americas. “I think it’s a shame that [city officials] are already so stressed out about this when we’ve all been very clear about what our intentions are.”

Sources: Associated Press, Miami Bureau, Miami New Times, Miami Today

DC police wrongfully arrested protesters

An internal police investigation into the roundup of protesters and bystanders at a downtown Washington park last September found that all 400 people were wrongfully arrested. The internal report, released by order of a federal judge, also said that a federal police official on the scene had earlier warned DC police that the mass arrests would be improper. Assistant Police Chief Peter Newsham had ordered his officers to block everyone into the park and to not let anyone leave. He then proceeded to have the officers arrest all that were in the park, without giving any order for the protesters to disperse. He explained that he decided to use the park as a roadblock for arresting lawbreakers but gave no order for people to leave it. He said he thought earlier warnings for people to stay on the sidewalks were sufficient. (Washington Post)