Almost a year after a series of Occupy Gainesville arrests landed dozens of protesters in jail, occupiers got a chance to challenge the charges.
Occupy Gainesville members went before a three-judge panel Tuesday for a court hearing at the Alachua County Courthouse.
The judges will make a decision after attorneys from both sides submit their final paperwork Nov. 13.
Since the 2011 incidents on Bo Diddley Community Plaza, Oct. 14, Oct. 27 and Nov. 12, protesters fought to throw out their trespassing charges, saying the arrests violated their First Amendment rights.
Geoffrey Mason, an attorney with Schackow, Mercadante & Edwards, said he represented 28 protesters.
Attorneys Bill Salmon and Jennifer Zedalis represented one person each, while Daniel Nee, as well as several other attorneys, represented the state and city.
All public Gainesville parks, including Bo Diddley Plaza, are open between 6 a.m. and 11:30 p.m. unless otherwise posted, according to a Gainesville ordinance. Anyone caught on public park grounds when it is closed will be arrested, according to the ordinance.
The defense argued the wording in the city ordinance was “too vague and overbroad.”
Zedalis argued the ordinance is essentially “a loitering statute” — not a trespassing law — adding that the ordinance could infringe on First Amendment rights.
Nee countered, saying the ordinance is a park-hours law that is meant to be enforced.
He said there are approximately 70 parks managed by the city, including the plaza, which is used by a multitude of people for various reasons.
Nee said the law only refers to when people can and can’t be on the plaza. It’s purpose isn’t to define First Amendment rights inside the park.
“The ordinance is concerned with one thing only: remaining in the park after hours,” he said.
During the hearing, the judges heard testimonies from several Gainesville Police Department officers and protesters.
Mason said he felt confident about how the defense presented the evidence.
“I think the judges really listened,” he said.
Contact Chris Alcantara at calcantara@alligator.org.
