PETA, Inc. v. Shore Transit
Summary
On August 17, 2021, the ACLU and Cockey, Brennan & Maloney, P.C. filed a lawsuit on behalf of People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) against the Tri-County Council for the Lower Eastern Shore of Maryland and its public transit division, Shore Transit.
The case is a First and Fourteenth Amendment challenge to Shore Transit’s policy prohibiting advertisements that are “political,” “controversial,” “objectionable,” or “in poor taste.”
In May 2020, PETA submitted two proposed advertisements calling for the closure of slaughterhouses along Maryland’s Eastern Shore. Shore Transit rejected the advertisements, stating that they were “too offensive” for the transit system’s advertising market and “political in nature,” in violation of Shore Transit’s advertising policy.
The complaint alleges that Shore Transit’s policy violates the First and Fourteenth Amendments because it is incapable of reasoned application by Shore Transit’s officials, viewpoint discriminatory against speech that Shore Transit deems offensive, and inherently vague. It also alleges that Shore Transit applied the policy in a viewpoint discriminatory manner to censor PETA’s advertisements because of their message. The lawsuit seeks a court order invalidating Shore Transit’s unconstitutional policy and requiring the agency to accept and run PETA’s ads on Shore Transit’s system.
On January 17, 2021, the district court issued an order denying Defendants’ motion to dismiss the case. According to the court, the complaint plausibly alleges that “the criteria contained in Defendants’ policy are insufficient to ensure principled, consistent application”; that the policy’s prohibition against advertisements are “controversial, offensive, objectionable, or in poor taste” discriminates against viewpoints that Shore Transit deems offensive; “that PETA’s advertisements were indeed rejected for viewpoint discriminatory reasons”; and that “Defendants’ prohibitions are vague.”
Legal Documents
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08/17/2021
Complaint -
08/17/2021
Plaintiff's Memorandum in Support of Motion for Preliminary Injunction -
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Attachment 1 - Briana Vazquez Declaration -
Exhibit A - Shore Transit Correspondence -
Exhibit B - PETA Letter -
Exhibit C - PETA Correspondence -
Attachment 2 - Robin R. Cockey Declaration -
Exhibit A - PETA Maryland Public Information Act (MPIA) Request -
Exhibit B - Tri-County Counsel Response to PETA MPIA Request -
Exhibit C - Reproduced PETA Ads -
Exhibit D - Vector Media Contract & Maryland Locally Operated Transit System Manual -
Exhibit E - TCC Executive Board Meeting Minutes -
Exhibit F - Vector Media Advertising Reports
PETA, Inc. v. Shore TransitLegal DocumentsAttachment 1 - Briana Vazquez DeclarationCourt: District Court (D. Md.)
Download DocumentPETA, Inc. v. Shore TransitLegal DocumentsExhibit A - Shore Transit CorrespondenceCourt: District Court (D. Md.)
Download DocumentPETA, Inc. v. Shore TransitLegal DocumentsExhibit B - PETA LetterCourt: District Court (D. Md.)
Download DocumentPETA, Inc. v. Shore TransitLegal DocumentsExhibit C - PETA CorrespondenceCourt: District Court (D. Md.)
Download DocumentPETA, Inc. v. Shore TransitLegal DocumentsAttachment 2 - Robin R. Cockey DeclarationCourt: District Court (D. Md.)
Download DocumentPETA, Inc. v. Shore TransitLegal DocumentsExhibit A - PETA Maryland Public Information Act (MPIA) RequestCourt: District Court (D. Md.)
Download DocumentPETA, Inc. v. Shore TransitLegal DocumentsExhibit B - Tri-County Counsel Response to PETA MPIA RequestCourt: District Court (D. Md.)
Download DocumentPETA, Inc. v. Shore TransitLegal DocumentsExhibit C - Reproduced PETA AdsCourt: District Court (D. Md.)
Download DocumentPETA, Inc. v. Shore TransitLegal DocumentsExhibit D - Vector Media Contract & Maryland Locally Operated Transit System ManualCourt: District Court (D. Md.)
Download DocumentPETA, Inc. v. Shore TransitLegal DocumentsExhibit E - TCC Executive Board Meeting MinutesCourt: District Court (D. Md.)
Download DocumentPETA, Inc. v. Shore TransitLegal DocumentsExhibit F - Vector Media Advertising ReportsCourt: District Court (D. Md.)
Download Document -
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09/09/2021
Defendants' Motion to Dismiss -
10/08/2021
Plaintiff's Response to Defendants' Motion to Dismiss -
11/01/2021
Defendants' Reply to Plaintiff's Opposition to Defendants' Motion to Dismiss -
01/18/2022
Order Denying Motion to Dismiss
Date Filed: 08/17/2021
Court: District Court (D. Md.)
Download DocumentDate Filed: 08/17/2021
Court: District Court (D. Md.)
Download DocumentDate Filed: 09/09/2021
Court: District Court (D. Md.)
Download DocumentDate Filed: 10/08/2021
Court: District Court (D. Md.)
Download DocumentDate Filed: 11/01/2021
Court: District Court (D. Md.)
Download DocumentDate Filed: 01/18/2022
Court: District Court (D. Md.)
Download DocumentPress Releases
ACLU Sues Maryland Transit System for Banning Ads from PETA