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A U.S. Army veteran and retired truck driver, who was arrested for a holding a sign with the message “God bless the homeless vets” in front of a Georgia city hall, filed two lawsuits Tuesday alleging his First Amendment right to speak freely outside government buildings had been infringed upon.
“If the First Amendment means anything, it must mean that you can hold a sign in front of city hall without being handcuffed,” The Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression (FIRE) attorney Adam Steinbaugh told Fox News Digital in a statement. “We look forward to vindicating Jeff’s rights and reinforcing the rights of all.”
FIRE filed the two lawsuits on behalf of Jeff Gray, who sued the City of Alpharetta, Georgia, and two of its police officers and the police chief of the City of Blackshear, Georgia, for his repeated detainment, search and arrest, which he believes to be an infringement of his constitutional rights.
“I have been harassed, trespassed, handcuffed and arrested countless times for peacefully exercising my First Amendment rights,” Gray said, according to a report from FIRE. “My intention is to ensure that all Americans from the wealthiest millionaire to the poorest homeless person can exercise these rights without fear of consequence from our government.”
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Courtesy of Lacy Jessica Photography
(Courtesy of Lacy Jessica Photography)
In January 2022, while Gray stood on a public sidewalk outside of Alpharetta City Hall holding the sign that read “God Bless the Homeless Vets,” police told him that the action was a form of illegal “panhandling,” according to FIRE. Gray documented the scene with his own camera to see how the public and police would react.
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Gray told police that he was not asking anyone for money, but even if he was, he…
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