Federal judge upholds curbs on DNC protest

By Sara Burnett, Rocky Mountain News (Contact)

Published August 6, 2008 at 5:29 p.m.
Updated August 6, 2008 at 11:54 p.m.

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The U.S. Secret Service and city of Denver may restrict protesters' access to the Democratic National Convention at the Pepsi Center, a federal judge ruled Wednesday.

U.S. District Judge Marcia S. Krieger said that while a designated parade route and fenced-in protest zone may inhibit protesters' ability to express themselves, they do not violate First Amendment rights to free speech.

The restrictions are justified by "important government interests," such as security, and the groups have ample alternative means of expression, she stated in a 71-page opinion.

Mayor John Hickenlooper called the decision "gratifying," and noted that of the three Democratic conventions since 2000, Denver's is the only plan fully upheld by a federal judge.

"With this validation of our plans, we continue moving forward - focused on making the convention a safe, inclusive and enjoyable event for all," he said.

But JoJo Pease, a member of Students for a Democratic Society and the Alliance for Real Democracy, called the restrictions an example of the "degradation of the Constitution."

"While (the ruling) is not surprising to me, it is disappointing," Pease said.

The American Civil Liberties Union sued the city and Secret Service on behalf of several advocacy groups, saying restrictions violated free speech.

The protest zone at the Pepsi Center, for example, is more than 700 feet away from the building's front doors and obstructed from view by a media tent, they argued. The designated parade route ends at Speer Boulevard and Larimer Street, though marchers may then walk through the Auraria campus to the protest zone, in Lot A.

They asked Krieger to order the city and Secret Service to:

* Move the protest area closer to the building.

* Allow parades along Auraria Parkway, near the Pepsi Center, on the days the convention is scheduled there.

* Allow parades along Chopper Circle, adjacent to the Pepsi Center, the day before the convention begins.

* Let protesters march from near the Capitol to one of the federal courthouses on the first day of the DNC.

Krieger denied each request. She said there were other locations where protesters could have photos taken with fully or partially unobstructed views of the Pepsi Center, and that delegates entering the convention could walk within 8 feet of protesters inside the zone.

She also noted that the Democratic National Convention Committee agreed to distribute information from advocacy groups to people inside the Pepsi Center.

U.S. Attorney for Colorado Troy Eid, whose office represented the Secret Service, praised the decision.

"The judge's ruling honors the First Amendment while protecting the people of Colorado and our guests," he said.

A separate hearing is scheduled for Aug. 12 on similar issues surrounding Invesco Field at Mile High, where the final night of the convention will be held.

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