Riverside Woman Sues Over Her Arrest For Clapping � CBS Sacramento

Riverside Woman Sues Over Her Arrest For Clapping � CBS Sacramento:

RIVERSIDE, Calif. (AP) — A woman who was arrested after she repeatedly clapped at a Riverside City Council meeting has filed a federal lawsuit.
The Riverside Press-Enterprise reports that Letitia Pepper argues her constitutional rights were violated.
Pepper, a longtime critic of Riverside government, was taken away in handcuffs last June. Authorities say she disrupted the meeting by repeatedly applauding speakers even after being warned by the mayor.
However, she was never criminally charged.

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Interesting legal issue that would pertain to CIDs if their meetings were held to the same standard as those of local governments.  This could be seen as an example of "symbolic speech," as we call it in the field of constitutional law, which is protected by the First Amendment.  Here's the video of Pepper being hauled out of the meeting room.   She has had some choice words for the government of Riverside.  Also--a person by the same name happens to be an attorney who was recently cited for misconduct by refusing to leave a courtroom after being ordered to do so by a judge. Then there's this.  She appears also to be involved with the public debate over marijuana.  I would say we can safely conclude that she is a person who fights hard for what she believes to be right, even to the point of challenging people in positions of authority.  This federal case involving the clapping will be worth following.