Judge skeptical of Occupy Eugene arrest

[central scrutinizer]

http://www.registerguard.com/web/news/sevendays/29011126-47/occupy-federal-eugene-coffin-judge.html.csp

A federal judge appears to be leaning toward dismissing on constitutional grounds a citation issued to a peaceful Occupy Eugene protester who refused to leave a public plaza outside the Federal Building in downtown Eugene the evening of July 11.

During Thursday oral arguments on Occupy Eugene’s motion to dismiss the charge against Emily Semple, U.S. District Magistrate Judge Thomas Coffin called “troubling” a new federal policy change banning protests on U.S. property between the hours of 10 p.m. and 7 a.m.

Coffin said the U.S. General Services Administration’s imposition of restricted hours appeared to be in response to Occupy protests across the country, “raising the specter of content-based” restrictions of free speech in violation of the First Amendment.