The American Civil Liberties Union filed suit against Blawnox Borough in federal court in Pittsburgh Tuesday and said its borough council violated the constitutional rights of two residents.
In the civil rights complaint, the ACLU is seeking an injunction to prevent borough council from enforcing policies the group says restrict videotaping at public meetings and public comment during agenda meetings. The lawsuit also seeks an unspecified amount of money for damages for the plaintiffs, Melina Brajovic and Peggy Albright.
"I think this case is really just about citizen watch dogs monitoring their local government and here, the local government doesn't seem to believe it should be monitored," said Sara Rose, an attorney for the Greater Pittsburgh Chapter of the ACLU.
At Brajovic's behest, Rose and the ACLU stepped in earlier this year and asked the borough to revise its taping restrictions. The borough did revises its rules, which included reducing the time to notify the borough about video taping a meeting from 24 hours to before the meeting. Solicitor Jack Cambest said borough officials were surprised by the lawsuit.
"We believe that we provide ample opportunity for public comment at the borough meetings and that we do not deny their First Amendment rights," he said.
The Blawnox women say they are fighting for not just their rights, but also so others can speak at and record the public meetings.
"They tried to make an example out of me to not participate and I want to make an example out them that people do want to participate," Albright said.
Albright, 61, a lifelong borough resident, was arrested at a council meeting two years ago when she repeatedly asked questions about a motor vehicle accident when council was not accepting public comment. She was charged with disorderly conduct and disrupting a public meeting. An Allegheny County Common Pleas judge tossed out the charges last year but the Allegheny County District Attorney appealed the case to Superior Court, which ruled in Albright's favor on June 25. The District Attorney's office has since appealed to the Supreme Court, which has not decided if it will hear the case.
Brajovic, 45, who originally is from Serbia, was ejected from a council meeting earlier this year for not obeying the borough's rules for videotaping its meetings. Required to sign a log before taping, Brajovic has signed in as Thomas Jefferson to protest the requirement. She now is a U.S. citizen.
The ACLU complaint pulls together claims from a string of heated interactions between the two women and public officials about when they can ask questions and guidelines for videotaping meetings.
The women have challenged the lack of opportunity to ask questions during agenda meetings, held once a month — although public comment is accepted during regular monthly meetings. They also have objected to the restrictions on video and audio recordings.
One rule entailed borough officials wedging a piece of cardboard between chairs to corral Brajovic and others who want to videotape or audiotape the meetings, while the rest of council chambers is devoid of an audience.
As far as the women's rights to speak covered by the First Amendment and the Sunshine Act, Cambest said the borough provides "ample opportunity for public comment."
But he added, "The First Amendment does not provide for constant disruption of public meetings and that is what is happening at Blawnox Borough at agenda and regular meetings."
Brajovic said that she wants the lawsuit to help people become more interested in local government.
"I hope that my videos will help with that and help them make their wise decisions about who they are going to elect to office the next time," she said.
In the civil rights complaint, the ACLU is seeking an injunction to prevent borough council from enforcing policies the group says restrict videotaping at public meetings and public comment during agenda meetings. The lawsuit also seeks an unspecified amount of money for damages for the plaintiffs, Melina Brajovic and Peggy Albright.
"I think this case is really just about citizen watch dogs monitoring their local government and here, the local government doesn't seem to believe it should be monitored," said Sara Rose, an attorney for the Greater Pittsburgh Chapter of the ACLU.
"We believe that we provide ample opportunity for public comment at the borough meetings and that we do not deny their First Amendment rights," he said.
The Blawnox women say they are fighting for not just their rights, but also so others can speak at and record the public meetings.
"They tried to make an example out of me to not participate and I want to make an example out them that people do want to participate," Albright said.
Albright, 61, a lifelong borough resident, was arrested at a council meeting two years ago when she repeatedly asked questions about a motor vehicle accident when council was not accepting public comment. She was charged with disorderly conduct and disrupting a public meeting. An Allegheny County Common Pleas judge tossed out the charges last year but the Allegheny County District Attorney appealed the case to Superior Court, which ruled in Albright's favor on June 25. The District Attorney's office has since appealed to the Supreme Court, which has not decided if it will hear the case.
Brajovic, 45, who originally is from Serbia, was ejected from a council meeting earlier this year for not obeying the borough's rules for videotaping its meetings. Required to sign a log before taping, Brajovic has signed in as Thomas Jefferson to protest the requirement. She now is a U.S. citizen.
The ACLU complaint pulls together claims from a string of heated interactions between the two women and public officials about when they can ask questions and guidelines for videotaping meetings.
The women have challenged the lack of opportunity to ask questions during agenda meetings, held once a month — although public comment is accepted during regular monthly meetings. They also have objected to the restrictions on video and audio recordings.
One rule entailed borough officials wedging a piece of cardboard between chairs to corral Brajovic and others who want to videotape or audiotape the meetings, while the rest of council chambers is devoid of an audience.
As far as the women's rights to speak covered by the First Amendment and the Sunshine Act, Cambest said the borough provides "ample opportunity for public comment."
But he added, "The First Amendment does not provide for constant disruption of public meetings and that is what is happening at Blawnox Borough at agenda and regular meetings."
Brajovic said that she wants the lawsuit to help people become more interested in local government.
"I hope that my videos will help with that and help them make their wise decisions about who they are going to elect to office the next time," she said.
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