SCHENECTADY, N.Y. — A federal court ruled Tuesday that a Christian man arrested and charged with trespassing for expressing his faith on a public college campus had a constitutional right to his religious speech. Last year, a New York court acquitted Greg Davis, represented by Alliance Defense Fund allied attorneys, of criminal charges. ADF provided funding for the criminal case and the subsequent civil lawsuit.
“Christians shouldn’t be penalized for expressing their beliefs,” said ADF-allied attorney Randall Wenger. “Choosing to exercise one’s First Amendment rights in a public place, such as a college campus, is not a crime. If this man can have his free speech rights ignored, then the same thing could happen to others. The court’s ruling is important for everyone in reinforcing that a college can’t single out religious speech for discrimination.”
In 2007, Davis attempted to express his faith by speaking and distributing religious tracts in a common area of SCCC. The college’s assistant dean, Michael Paul D’Annibale, told Davis to stop preaching and leave the campus, or face arrest.
Davis was arrested based on the content of his speech but was later acquitted of the criminal charges based largely on evidence obtained from his own video camera, which SCCC officials had attempted to bar him from using. ADF Senior Legal Counsel Brian Raum and ADF-allied attorney Jim Trainor represented Davis in the criminal case (www.telladf.org/news/story.aspx?cid=4174).
“Free religious expression is not free if it is restricted to the inside of a church or home,” Wenger explained. “The court was correct to rule that Mr. Davis cannot be prevented from being on the SCCC campus and that he has a constitutional right to videotape his actions.”
A copy of the court order issued by the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of New York in Davis v. Stratton is available at www.telladf.org/UserDocs/DavisWin.pdf.
ADF is a legal alliance of Christian attorneys and like-minded organizations defending the right of people to freely live out their faith. Launched in 1994, ADF employs a unique combination of strategy, training, funding, and litigation to protect and preserve religious liberty, the sanctity of life, marriage, and the family.
www.telladf.org