A federal judge ruled that Liberty, New York officials should not have arrested William Barboza in 2012 for writing the words “fuck your shitty town bitches” on his parking ticket. The judge found the words constituted no real threat. (Al Jazeera America, September 15, 2015, by Wilson Dizard)
ACLU lawyer Mariko Hiirose who represented Barboza said, “New Yorkers should not be afraid to protest or complain about a speeding ticket — or any other government action — because they might be dragged to jail for using a few harmless words. The First Amendment protects people’s right to express their opinions about the government, and our government is better for it.” (Huffington Post, September 15, 2015, by Christopher Mathias)
Barboza’s lawyers had argued that the town had a history of charging citizens for using profane language and failed to educate its police force in free speech issues and protected speech. (The New York Times, September 15, 2015, by Benjamin Weiser)