Today, the American Civil Liberties Union of Ohio Foundation announced that on Tuesday October 12, 2004, a federal court struck down speech restrictions aimed at the campaign materials of political candidates taking part in Parma Heights’ annual Memorial Day parade.

The ACLU of Ohio represents Zoltan Zoltai, a candidate in the May 2003 Parma Heights City Council election. Zoltai took part in the 2003 parade but was prohibited from displaying campaign materials by a city official who informed him that such displays were forbidden, although written policies regarding that point never existed.

Despite overwhelming evidence to the contrary, the City also argued that the parade was a privately run and sponsored event making any speech restrictions constitutional. Instead, U.S. District Court Judge John Manos found that the parade is indeed organized and paid for by the City, as the ACLU of Ohio maintained, and therefore is subject to First Amendment jurisprudence. Judge Manos also took note of the number of incumbent politicians who appeared in the parade and were identified as office-holders while non-incumbent office-seekers, such as Zoltai, were obviously refused an opportunity to identify themselves in a similar manner.

“This ruling is an important victory for those who wish to exercise their free speech rights without being subjected to completely arbitrary and unwritten polices by their local government. Specifically, the decision has leveled the playing field for ordinary citizens challenging entrenched incumbent politicians,” said Andrea Whitaker, Volunteer Attorney for the ACLU of Ohio Foundation.