Federal court sides with woman fined for profane political yard sign

A federal court on Tuesday ordered the city of Lakeland, Tenn., to pay back fines levied against Julie Pereira for putting up a political yard sign. The court’s order, which came as part of a settlement agreement between the parties, also commanded the city to pay Pereira almost $32,000 for her attorney costs. And finally, the court ordered authorities in Lakeland to pay her $1 for violating her First Amendment rights to free speech.

All of this over a yard sign? Pereira put up a sign in her front yard earlier this year indicating disapproval of both President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump in the 2024 election. City officials fined her for the sign because it contained profanity, alleging that it violated a local regulation prohibiting obscenity. She sued, saying the city’s actions violated her First Amendment rights to free speech. Judge Mark S. Norris of the District Court for the Western District of Tennessee determined that the sign was not obscene, according to the Supreme Court’s Cohen v. California decision.

Dig deeper: Read Christina Grube’s report in The Sift about a court ordering authorities in Vermont to pay a man $175,000 after punishing him for making an obscene hand gesture.