I swear, this column should be renamed Law and Disorder
Seattle, WA – A federal judge issued a ruling on Tuesday blocking Seattle police from enforcing property damage laws for any vandalism resulting in less than $750 in damages.
https://policetribune.com/federal-j...ice-from-enforcing-property-damage-ordinance/
U.S. District Court Judge Marsha Pechman issued an injunction on June 13, claiming the City of Seattle’s property damage ordinance “poses a real threat [of] censorship” as it pertains to graffiti, KIRO reported.
Under Seattle Municipal Code 12A.08.020, an individual who damages someone else’s property or “writes, paints, or draws any inscription, figure, or mark of any type on any public or private building or other structure” not belonging to them and without permission is guilty of property destruction.
Pechman deemed the language of the ordinance as “overly vague and overboard,” and could potentially violate people’s rights under the First and 14th Amendments, KIRO reported.
“The criminalization of free speech significantly harms the public interest in far greater measure than the public might benefit from criminalizing property damage,” the judge added, according to The Seattle Times.
The offense is listed as a gross misdemeanor, which involves damages under $750, according to KTTH.
Seattle, WA – A federal judge issued a ruling on Tuesday blocking Seattle police from enforcing property damage laws for any vandalism resulting in less than $750 in damages.
https://policetribune.com/federal-j...ice-from-enforcing-property-damage-ordinance/
U.S. District Court Judge Marsha Pechman issued an injunction on June 13, claiming the City of Seattle’s property damage ordinance “poses a real threat [of] censorship” as it pertains to graffiti, KIRO reported.
Under Seattle Municipal Code 12A.08.020, an individual who damages someone else’s property or “writes, paints, or draws any inscription, figure, or mark of any type on any public or private building or other structure” not belonging to them and without permission is guilty of property destruction.
Pechman deemed the language of the ordinance as “overly vague and overboard,” and could potentially violate people’s rights under the First and 14th Amendments, KIRO reported.
“The criminalization of free speech significantly harms the public interest in far greater measure than the public might benefit from criminalizing property damage,” the judge added, according to The Seattle Times.
The offense is listed as a gross misdemeanor, which involves damages under $750, according to KTTH.