FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
\nMarch 9, 2020
\nContact: Lauren Regan
\n(541) 687-9180<\/p>\n
Eugene, OR \u2014 Last week CLDC attorneys filed a motion in the Lane County Circuit Court on
\nbehalf of our client, Eric T. Jackson, to dismiss his charges of Criminal Trespass in the Second
\nDegree.<\/p>\n
At the time of his arrest, Mr. Jackson was engaged in protected speech activity at Wayne
\nMorse Free Speech Plaza (\u201cFree Speech Plaza\u201d) located in the center of Eugene, Lane
\nCounty, Oregon. Mr. Jackson challenges the current County Curfew Rule as overbroad and
\nchallenges the constitutionality of the duration and enforcement of the 11 p.m. to 6 a.m. curfew
\nat the Free Speech Plaza.<\/p>\n
Jackson and the CLDC seek to defend access to public space in Eugene, where everyone
\nshould be able to engage in Constitutionally-protected free speech regardless of the time of
\nday. We absolutely oppose any efforts by the City or County governments to limit the right to
\nfree speech or the right to use traditional public spaces that are guaranteed the most
\nexpansive First Amendment protections.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe extremely important First Amendment rights of free speech and assembly do not go to
\nsleep at night. When the State attempts to restrict or limit our right to gather together and
\nprotest or voice our grievances, we all lose an important democratic freedom. If we don\u2019t have
\nfree speech rights at the Wayne Morse Free Speech Plaza, where do we have the right to hold
\na vigil or protest in this town? The County and City have gravely overstepped their authority,
\nand we must hold them accountable,\u201d said Lauren Regan, CLDC Executive Director and
\nSenior Staff Attorney.<\/p>\n
According to the Wayne Morse Historical Parks Corporation, the Free Speech Plaza was
\nestablished to \u201cbetter enable Lane County Citizens to exercise the precious rights of free
\nspeech and assembly.\u201d It is literally at the center of downtown Eugene, and has been an
\nimportant community gathering space for more than three decades.<\/p>\n
The City of Eugene and Lane County have attempted to control the use of the public Plaza on
\nseveral occasions, most notably with several variations of a curfew rule. After successive
\nrulings by the Eugene Municipal Court that found the curfews unconstitutional, the County rewrote
\nthe language of the curfew rule and added several constitutional buzzwords.<\/p>\n
The challenge by Mr. Jackson is the first time the curfew rule has been challenged since it was
\nrewritten.<\/p>\n
The curfew rule was issued in the context of protests against the local government\u2019s treatment
\nof unhoused people. It is one attempt amongst many by the local government to further
\ncriminalize the unhoused.<\/p>\n
As stated in the motion to dismiss, \u201c\u2026the City fails to recognize that it is not protest or other
\nexpressive activity that leads to the harms sought to be prevented. Rather, it is a lack of
\nhousing and shelter, systemic economic and social inequality, lack of available health care,
\nrising housing costs, lack of bathrooms and trash receptacles, and City and County policies
\nregarding the unhoused that lead to camping and the associated \u201charms.\u201d<\/p>\n
If the curfew is upheld, it further limits access to \u201cpublic forums,\u201d or spaces where individuals
\ncan gather to make their voices heard. Eugene\u2019s Park Blocks, as well as the butterfly lot, are
\nalso subject to curfews (since late 2018), leaving sidewalks as virtually the only place where
\npeople can gather near the proverbial \u201cseat of government\u201d to assemble and exercise their
\nconstitutional rights.<\/p>\n
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Download this press release as a PDF here<\/a>.<\/p>\n