A Georgia sheriff violated the constitutional rights of sex offenders by placing signs in their yards warning trick-or-treaters to stay away on Halloween, a federal appeals court ruled.
Butts County Sheriff Gary Long instructed deputies ahead of Halloween in 2018 to put the large signs in the front yards of all 57 registered sex offenders in the county, telling youngsters to “stop” and not to “trick-or-treat at this address.”
Three registered sex offenders in the county later filed a federal lawsuit, claiming the signs violated their First Amendment rights. A judge initially blocked Long from posting the signs, but denied a permanent injunction and granted summary judgment in favor of Long.
A three-judge panel at the US Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit reversed Judge Marc Treadwell’s decision in an opinion issued Wednesday, ruling the oversize signs are “compelled government speech” and violate a homeowner’s First Amendment rights.
“Thus, we vacate the district court’s judgment in favor of the sheriff and remand for further proceedings consistent with this opinion,” Judge Frank Hull wrote.
The judges noted that none of the three sex offenders who sued — Reginald Holden, Corey McClendon and Christopher Reed — have been classified as posing an increased risk of recidivism. Treadwell also found that they had been “rehabilitated” and were leading productive lives.
“The sheriff does not dispute this, nor does the record support a contrary finding,” Wednesday’s ruling reads.
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