Friday, February 21, 2020

Court Says Student Evangelists May Preach In Chicago's Millennium Park

In Swart v. City of Chicago, (ND IL, Feb. 20. 2020), an Illinois federal district court granted a preliminary injunction to four Wheaton College students who were part of an outreach ministry to prevent the city of Chicago from enforcing its regulations limiting speech and handbilling activities in the downtown Millennium Park. The court held that the park is a traditional public forum, that the regulations, as enforced, are not content neutral and unconstitutionally vague.  The court also granted a preliminary injunction to intervenors who engage in other kinds of speech activities in the park. Chicago Sun Times reports on the decision.