Originally published April 26, 2007 at 12:00 AM | Page modified April 26, 2007 at 2:46 PM
State high court rules Westlake Center had a right to limit war protesters
In a 7-2 vote on free speech, the state Supreme Court ruled that Westlake Center officials were within their right to ask Iraq war protesters...
Seattle Times staff reporter
In a 7-2 vote on free speech, the state Supreme Court ruled that Westlake Center officials were within their right to ask Iraq war protesters to lower their picket signs walking between the mall and the monorail station.
The court affirmed the King County Superior Court decision that the area is not a public forum and that the mall's request for protesters to lower their signs is "a reasonable regulation on speech," according to the Supreme Court opinion published this morning.
Beth Sanders, who worked for the Government Accountability Project, sued the city of Seattle and Westlake Center after she was told to put her sign down while waiting to board the monorail on the way to a rally at Seattle Center in February 2003. Westlake Center argued that they were concerned about public safety.
Justice Barbara Madsen wrote in the court's opinion that, "While signs had to be lowered in the Center itself, they could be carried aloft on nearby public sidewalks outside of and adjacent to the Center."
Justice Richard Sanders and Tom Chambers wrote dissenting opinions.
Interest in public safety "cannot summarily trump the right to protest and picket, and we cannot let fear of some hypothetical injury justify an abridgement of one's First Amendment rights," Sanders wrote in his dissenting opinion.
Sharon Pian Chan: 206-464-2204 or schan@seattletimes.com
Copyright © 2007 The Seattle Times Company
Seattle Times Fund For The Needy offers opportunity to give
Tugboat sinks on Seattle's waterfront
Child-support error costs nearly $21,000
Danny Westneat: Bonus for supe with a B minus?
Nicole Brodeur: You have more to spare than you think you do

LA Galaxy's David Beckham
Los Angeles Galaxy's David Beckham talks about the upcoming MLS Cup final during after a team practice.
nwjobs

Post a comment

Michelle Goodman blogs about work/life balance.
How to tell your office you're gravely ill
Post a comment
nwautos

Choosing a new sedan? Weigh the impact of your choice on your wallet and on the planet.
Post a comment
- 'The Road' takes Viggo Mortensen to Mount St. Helens and Astoria, Ore.
- Craigslist adoption ad: A plea by young mother-to-be? A scam?
- Italian lead prosecutor argues Knox motive was hatred
- Tugboat sinks on Seattle's waterfront
- Child-support error costs nearly $21,000
- Italian prosecutors request life sentence for UW student
- Man shot in chest on E. Union Street in Capitol Hill
- Washington state wines make annual best-of list
- Chase shrugs off loss of CD investors
- Mariners Blog | A Mariners-Tigers swap makes a whole lot of sense for both teams
- Senate vote clears hurdle
239 - Child-support error costs nearly $21,000
120 - Tight Senate vote launches health care over hurdle
119 - Vikings easily beat the Seahawks
118 - Palin excitement builds in Tri-Cities
116 - Cutting through breast-cancer confusion
89 - Prosecutor requests life in prison for Amanda Knox
88 - Game thread
70 - New York terror trials will restore faith in rule of law
53 - Chase shrugs off loss of CD investors
48
- Washington state wines make annual best-of list
- Nonprofits get creative using Twitter and Facebook to make donation easier
- It's possible to recover a life lost to hoarding
- Lynnwood is reinventing itself — again
- Great places to cross-country ski for free (or almost) in the Methow
- 'The Road' takes Viggo Mortensen to Mount St. Helens and Astoria, Ore.
- Child-support error costs nearly $21,000
- Recipes: Sesame Pork Roast, Sour Cream Mashed Potatoes, Gingerbread with Lemon Sauce and more
- Banff: powder, peaks & purity
- 175 foster kids in Washington get 'forever families'





