The American Civil Liberties Union of Vermont is asking a judge to rule on a case involving the Black Lives Matter movement, a Facebook post, and the Brattleboro Police Department.
The ACLU of Vermont filed a federal lawsuit in January 2022 after a Brattleboro resident was cited for disturbing the peace through her Facebook post.
The case goes back to the days following George Floyd’s murder in June 2020. That's when Brattleboro resident Isabel Vinson voiced support for the Black Lives Matter movement on her Facebook page.
A Brattleboro business owner subsequently posted that all lives matter, and Vinson then suggested that others post reviews of the business online.
The Brattleboro Police Department then cited Vinson under a Vermont law that says people can not use electronic means to threaten, harass or intimidate.
The charge was eventually dropped, but the ACLU still wants a federal court to rule on the Vermont law, which the group says threatens the First Amendment right to free speech.
This week, the ACLU asked the federal judge to make a ruling before the case goes to trial.
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