August 2, 2006
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT:
media@aclu.orgHonolulu Officials Misused Trespass Law to Silence
Advocates for the
Homeless, ACLU Says
HONOLULU -- The American Civil Liberties Union of
Hawaii announced today that it has filed a motion in criminal court on behalf of
two advocates for the homeless arrested for trespassing while peacefully
protesting on the grounds of Honolulu City Hall. The ACLU is asking the
court to dismiss the case on the grounds that the protesters were unlawfully
arrested while exercising their constitutional rights to assemble and
protest.
The protesters were opposing the City and County of
Honolulu’s (CCH) decision to begin 10:00 p.m. nightly closure of Ala Moana Beach
Park — a decision that callously and suddenly displaced more than 200 homeless
individuals.
“Both CCH officials and police officers
prevented the group from exercising its constitutional right to assemble and
protest,” said ACLU of Hawaii cooperating attorney Rick Sing of the criminal
defense firm Hawk Sing & Ignacio. “The defendants’ baseless arrest raises
serious concerns about the police department’s practices, training and
supervision, particularly about the right of citizens to petition their
government. The results of this case will impact the free speech rights of every
Honolulu resident.”
On March 27, 2006, Defendants Julia Matsui
Estrella and Utu Langi, advocates for the homeless, alongside approximately
50-60 other advocates, church leaders and homeless persons, marched to the
grounds of City Hall to protest the park’s closure and the CCH’s failure to
provide adequate alternatives for the displaced homeless. Less than two
hours later, they were in jail.
The ACLU of Hawaii argues
that the CCH reacted to their peaceful and lawful protest by taking affirmative
steps to intimidate and ultimately silence their dissent. City officials
directed Honolulu Police Department officers to cite Estrella and Langi for
trespassing and subsequently to arrest them on the charge of “Criminal Trespass”
after they refused to leave the grounds of City Hall. Their trial is
currently scheduled to begin August 29, 2006.
Prior to filing the
motion to dismiss, the ACLU of Hawaii urged the Department of the Prosecuting
Attorney to drop both charges on First Amendment grounds. The ACLU further
asserted that the protesters cannot be charged for Criminal Trespass because the
statute applies to commercial property – not public property like City
Hall. The prosecutor’s failure to drop the charges led to the ACLU’s
current motion.
This is the second time in two years that
the ACLU has risen to challenge unconstitutional enforcement of the Criminal
Trespass statute. In 2004, the Hawaii legislature expanded the Criminal
Trespass Statute with Act 50 (the so-called “Squatter’s Law”), which allowed any
authorized individual to “ban” individuals from public property for any or no
reason. The law was intended to target people living on public beaches,
but the result was erosion of access to public spaces, including government
buildings. The ACLU dropped its challenge to the law after the legislature
repealed Act 50. However, the ACLU said the protesters’ arrest shows that
despite the repeal of Act 50 subjectivity and bias are still being used to
justify oppression of the homeless and their advocates and of free assembly in
public places.
“Our lawsuit challenging Act 50 sought to end the
unbridled discretion given to law enforcement officials to engage in arbitrary
and capricious denials of protected expression based on nothing more than their
individual prejudices and predilections,” said Lois Perrin, ACLU of Hawaii Legal
Director. “Despite the fact that Act 50 was repealed, we now know that
police officers are still using it as a tool to chill constitutionally protected
speech simply because they do not agree with the content of the message.
The Constitution does not tolerate such behavior.”
