ADF: No permit is required to distribute religious literature at Mt. Rushmore
http://www.alliancedefensefund.org/news/story.aspx?cid=4689
ALLIANCE DEFENSE FUND MEDIA ADVISORY
September 25, 2008 – FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT ADF MEDIA RELATIONS: (480) 444-0020 or www.telladf.org/pressroom
ADF attorney available to media after hearing
involving free speech at Mt. Rushmore
Permission required before exercise of free speech
at national parks and monuments
WHO: ADF Litigation Staff Counsel Heather Gebelin Hacker
WHAT: Available for interviews after hearing in Boardley v. U.S. Department of the Interior
WHEN: Friday, Sept. 26, following hearing, which begins at 10:30 a.m. EDT
WHERE: U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, 333 Constitution Ave. NW, Room 6315, Washington
WASHINGTON — Alliance Defense Fund Litigation Staff Counsel Heather Gebelin Hacker will be available for media interviews Friday following a hearing on behalf of a Minnesota man prohibited from sharing his faith at Mt. Rushmore National Monument in South Dakota. ADF filed a lawsuit in federal court after the man was told he could not pass out religious literature near the entrance of the monument without a permit.
“Christians shouldn’t be told to put expressing their beliefs on hold until they get a permit. It is unbelievable that the National Park Service would deny freedom of speech at the foot of Mt. Rushmore, where four men who represent America’s freedoms are immortalized,” said ADF Litigation Staff Counsel Heather Gebelin Hacker. “The Park Service ignored our client’s multiple requests to peacefully distribute literature there, relenting only when we filed this lawsuit.”
On Aug. 9, 2007, Michael Boardley and a few other individuals peacefully handed out gospel tracts near the front entrance of Mt. Rushmore without incident or comment from park officials. The next day, they were approached by a park ranger who told them that they must have a speech permit or cease passing out the tracts. Boardley made multiple requests for a permit through the phone number the Park Service provided, but no permit ever arrived (www.telladf.org/news/story.aspx?cid=4297). Park officials granted his request only after he filed suit.
“The Park Service should know that its requirement of a permit, as well as its denial of Mr. Boardley’s request for one, was clearly unconstitutional,” said Hacker. “It’s our hope that this lawsuit will restore free speech and religious freedom not just for Mr. Boardley, but for others visiting national parks and monuments as well.”
A fact sheet is available on the lawsuit, Boardley v. United States Department of the Interior, at www.telladf.org/UserDocs/BoardleyFactSheet.pdf.
ADF is a legal alliance of Christian attorneys and like-minded organizations defending the right of people to freely live out their faith. Launched in 1994, ADF employs a unique combination of strategy, training, funding, and litigation to protect and preserve religious liberty, the sanctity of life, marriage, and the family.