CONTACTStaffCAREER OPPORTUNITIESADVERTISE WITH USPRIVACY POLICYPRIVACY PREFERENCESTERMS OF USELEGAL NOTICE
© 2024 Pride Publishing Inc.
All Rights reserved
All Rights reserved
By continuing to use our site, you agree to our Private Policy and Terms of Use.
An Ohio appeals court has overturned a lower court ruling that a flag-burning was protected by the Constitution, saying a city has a right to regulate open burning. The 10th Ohio district court of appeals ruled Thursday in the case of two men who burned a gay pride flag during a parade in Columbus in 2001. The men--Charles Spingola, 47, and Thomas Meyer, 49, both of Newark--had been charged with open burning, a first-degree misdemeanor punishable by as much as six months in jail. But former Franklin County environmental judge Richard Pfeiffer ruled that the flag-burning was protected under the First Amendment guarantee of free speech. Tom Condit, attorney for Spingola and Meyer, said it is a "virtual certainty" he will appeal the case to the Ohio supreme court. The appellate court said regulating open burning "is unquestionably within the city's constitutional power.... Requiring that one obtain a permit before engaging in such conduct places only a minor restriction on free expression," visiting judge William Harsha wrote for the court in a unanimous opinion. The fire code does not prohibit flag-burning, he said, but does ban ceremonial burning without a permit. The appeals court sent the case back to Franklin County environmental court judge Harlan Hale. Ray Vasvari, legal counsel for the American Civil Liberties Union of Ohio, said that as long as the fire code takes no position on the message a flag burner is trying to convey and spells out the reasons a permit can be approved or denied, then it is constitutional.
Want more breaking equality news & trending entertainment stories?
Check out our NEW 24/7 streaming service: the Advocate Channel!
Download the Advocate Channel App for your mobile phone and your favorite streaming device!
From our Sponsors
Most Popular
Here Are Our 2024 Election Predictions. Will They Come True?
November 07 2023 1:46 PM
Meet all 37 of the queer women in this season's WNBA
April 17 2024 11:24 AM
17 Celebs Who Are Out & Proud of Their Trans & Nonbinary Kids
November 30 2023 10:41 AM
Here Are the 15 Most LGBTQ-Friendly Cities in the U.S.
November 01 2023 5:09 PM
Which State Is the Queerest? These Are the States With the Most LGBTQ+ People
December 11 2023 10:00 AM
These 27 Senate Hearing Room Gay Sex Jokes Are Truly Exquisite
December 17 2023 3:33 PM
10 Cheeky and Homoerotic Photos From Bob Mizer's Nude Films
November 18 2023 10:05 PM
42 Flaming Hot Photos From 2024's Australian Firefighters Calendar
November 10 2023 6:08 PM
These Are the 5 States With the Smallest Percentage of LGBTQ+ People
December 13 2023 9:15 AM
Here are the 15 gayest travel destinations in the world: report
March 26 2024 9:23 AM
Watch Now: Advocate Channel
Trending Stories & News
For more news and videos on advocatechannel.com, click here.
Trending Stories & News
For more news and videos on advocatechannel.com, click here.
Latest Stories
In the face of tweets and turmoil, why I left the South as a medical student
April 18 2024 7:30 AM
Trans man Tee Arnold shot to death in Florida
April 17 2024 4:41 PM
Can scientific research on the causes of homosexuality be used against LGBTQ+ people?
April 17 2024 4:02 PM
George Takei releases kids' book about his childhood in internment camp
April 17 2024 3:18 PM
PLUS
ExclusivesTodrick Hall on surviving the rumors and remembering where he came from
April 17 2024 2:33 PM
Pride
Yahoo FeedHow The Pride Store celebrates National Tea Day: A tale of two brews
April 17 2024 2:14 PM