The Supreme Court heard the case on Wednesday of a prolific Christian preacher who wants to be able to challenge a Mississippi ordinance that he says limits his ability to proselytize.
Gabriel Olivier was ticketed in 2019 for violating the City of Brandon’s ordinance limiting protests using loudspeakers outside of live events. Now he wants to have the law struck down as a violation of his constitutional rights.
The issue before the justices is whether Mr. Olivier can mount the challenge now, rather than wait for another incident.
Justices on both sides seemed sympathetic but said he is running into a 1994 precedent, Heck v. Humphrey, which said someone needs to expunge or reverse a previous conviction to be able to collect damages for a constitutional rights violation claim.
“The language, just read to mean what it means, puts you out of court,” Justice Elena Kagan, an Obama appointee, told Allyson Ho, Mr. Olivier’s lawyer.
But justices pointed out that another preacher who was in the same situation, but without a previous citation by authorities, could bring the same challenge.
That worries several of them, who said Mr. Olivier would lose rights in perpetuity based purely on a previous violation.
“What you’re basically saying is simply because they’ve been previously convicted, they cannot seek prospective relief 20 years from now unless they get an expungement,” said Justice Sonia Sotomayor, another Obama appointee.
The City of Brandon, Mississippi, said its ordinance was needed because Mr. Olivier and his group were so loud that police officers had difficulty hearing their radios.
The city said Mr. Olivier should have brought his case as part of a challenge to his past conviction, not as a challenge to speculative future enforcement.
G. Todd Butler, representing the city, also said Mr. Olivier could have made his First Amendment arguments in state court, but he preferred to try to make a federal claim.
“Although petitioner claims in this case that the courthouse doors are closed, that argument ignores the countless doors petitioner chose not to enter,” Mr. Butler said.
Ms. Ho told the justices her client has a key claim under Section 1983, which allows individuals to collect in civil suits against the government when they have their federal or constitutional rights violated. She says he has a right to ensure he won’t face further prosecution for his preaching.
“Gabriel Olivier is called to share his Christian faith by preaching in a city park. He was arrested and charged with violating a city ordinance that purports to criminalize his religious speech,” she said.
The case is Gabriel Olivier v. City of Brandon. A decision is expected by the end of June.
