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Let There Be Light
Let There Be Light
Paige Girdwood
After the case was over the ACLU office in Missouri we contacted by dozens of people who were wanting to share their similar circumstances. Hopefully, this case will be used to influence judicial decisions in the future.
Afterward, the ACLU's legal director, Mr. Rothert, commented on the case. He said: "when someone is communicating in a public street, [he is] expressing [himself] in a way that's protected by the first amendment," and "unless there is a strong reason why the government should be allowed to censor that speech, the police shouldn't be stopping or prosecuting people because of the content of their speech."
Michael Elli lives in Ellisville Missouri. He was driving past a speed trap one evening and began flashing his head lights at oncoming traffic to warn them. One of the police officers saw him doing this, and pulled him over. Elli got a $1000 moving citation. He claimed this was unconstitutional, got in touch with the American Civil Liberties Union of Missouri and sued the city.
The police department renounced their position on the subject, but the ACLU sued them, anyways. U.S. District Judge Henry Autrey ruled in favor of Elli, and commanded that the city no longer punish drivers who flash their head lights.
The United States Constitution to prohibits the making of any law respecting an establishment of religion, impeding the free exercise of religion, abridging the freedom of speech, infringing on the freedom of the press, interfering with the right to peaceably assemble or prohibiting the petitioning for a governmental redress of grievances.