Woman Arrested at Fahrenheit 9/11 Showing...

Radar · 07-06-2004, 01:25 PM

http://www.allaroundphilly.com/site/news.c..._id=17782&rfi=6

Woman cited for passing out voter registration forms
GINA ZOTTI, Staff Writer 06/29/2004

EAST CALN -- She said she didn’t scream fire in a crowded theater.

All she did was hand out voter registration forms to movie patrons on their way out of the controversial film "Fahrenheit 9/11" on Saturday night.

Because of that, Lani Frank, of Easttown, doesn’t understand why -- or feel it was right -- that she was handcuffed and cited at the Regal Cinemas by police.

State police said Frank was in a place of business and causing a disturbance. They said she refused to leave and, for that, was cited for disorderly conduct. The citation, much like one a person would receive for a traffic violation, is a summary offense.

But, Frank contends that she was not making a disturbance and was on her way to her car before police motioned her back to ask her questions.

The police arrived after Frank had a discussion with a manager and security guard at the theater, she said.

Frank was inside handing out the forms to movie-goers on their way out of the sold-out 7:50 p.m. shows Saturday night.

"I was handing out the forms in the theater, but I was not making any mention of party affiliation or candidates," she said. "I never said anything negative to anyone."

Frank said there were many people who took the forms and many who thanked her for making them available.

She said that on her way into the theater, she saw another woman who was handing out the forms but had run out.

"Everybody’s been doing it all over the place," Frank said. "For them to have stopped me from doing it seemed improper and that’s why I didn’t leave."

From California to Florida, there were reports of other voter registration drives during the opening weekend of the Michael Moore film.

The movie, which gives Moore’s take on what happened to the country after the events of Sept. 11, 2001, and how the Bush administration used the event to push what he said was its agenda to go to war with Iraq, brought in $21.6 million in the box office this weekend, despite only playing at 848 theaters nationwide.

Still in the theater lobby, as the crowds were making their way outside, Frank said she was approached by the theater manager and told she wasn’t allowed to be doing what she was doing because she was on private property.

She said she told the man that she was not handing out any campaign literature, and the group, including Frank’s husband, walked out together -- she contends she was not escorted out but was leaving regardless.

She said she continued outside with her husband and chatted with friends on the way to the car when troopers called her over to speak.

They took her license and information and she said she asked why she was not allowed to hand out the forms if she was outside on public property.

"I might have been raising my voice, but I wasn’t screaming and yelling and waiving," she said.

On the contrary, she said she believed the "very nature" of the police being at the theater is what caused the disruption.

"Now they (bystanders) were paying attention, before they were just chit-chatting with friends," she said. "They started to get curious."

Frank was handcuffed and brought to the Embreeville barracks where she was given a citation for disorderly conduct with the intent to create a public inconvenience, annoyance or alarm.

"They didn’t need to take me into custody. I wasn’t inciting a riot," she said.

Frank said that she intends to fight the citation on principle that she should not have been required to leave at all because of her actions in handing out the forms.

"My assumption is that what I did was not legally wrong," she said. "If I’m found to be incorrect, I’ll pay the fine and say I’m sorry. But, I don’t believe I’m wrong ..I think they overreacted."

Acting alone in handing out the forms, not with Democratic committee, Frank said she was enjoying the night out with her husband and friends.

While she assumed those who attended the movie would be sympathetic to her political viewsand the way she would vote, Frank said her main objective was to encourage people to vote regardless of their party affiliation.

Frank said she is against the war in Iraq and felt the citizens of the country have been misled on the government’s reasons for going to war.

SteveDallas · 07-06-2004, 01:33 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Radar

She said she continued outside with her husband and chatted with friends on the way to the car when troopers called her over to speak.

They took her license and information and she said she asked why she was not allowed to hand out the forms if she was outside on public property.

Think what you will about this (I personally think it's rather high-handed myself and, admittedly without the benfit of having been there, the theater manager could probably have done a lot better job of handling it). But I'm sorry, when you're in the parking lot of a movie theater, you're not on "public property." And there is fairly well-established case law that the owners of a privately-owned space that is open to the public, such as a mall or shopping center, DO NOT have to allow political protests or other activities on their property if they don't wish to.

glatt · 07-06-2004, 01:54 PM

Sure, but then the charge should be "trespassing" not "disorderly conduct with the intent to create a public inconvenience, annoyance or alarm."

The second one sounds more like a picket line. She was just passing out papers. Not blocking anyone.

Radar · 07-06-2004, 02:02 PM

She wasn't causing a disturbance and wasn't harming anyone. The theater manager asked her to leave and she was doing that right after she finished.

She didn't even suggest which party people should register under. How is handing out voter registration forms a political protest? How is it a disturbance? How is it anything that could be construed as disorderly conduct?

If anything the theater manager should have thanked her for providing a service to his patrons.

Troubleshooter · 07-06-2004, 02:05 PM

If she waited until she finished to leave and he had asked her to leave before that then she was in the act of trespassing.

The rest was a bit much though.

Radar · 07-06-2004, 02:09 PM

She wasn't charge with trespass and it's doubtful she could have been since she left right after she was asked to leave. She continued handing out registration forms while explaining to the manager that she wasn't handing out campaign literature, and wasn't promoting any candidates or political parties, etc. By the time the conversation was over, she left of her own accord.

Beestie · 07-06-2004, 02:09 PM

Fine. I'll start passing out gun permit applications after the showing of Bowling for Columbine. I won't even tell folks which type of gun they should acquire as I feel it is a deeply personal decision.

Troubleshooter · 07-06-2004, 02:13 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Beestie

Fine. I'll start passing out gun permit applications after the showing of Bowling for Columbine.

I kind of like that idea.

Radar · 07-06-2004, 02:17 PM

I'd have no problem with that at all, although I don't know of many theaters still showing that movie.

Happy Monkey · 07-06-2004, 02:26 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Beestie

Fine. I'll start passing out gun permit applications after the showing of Bowling for Columbine. I won't even tell folks which type of gun they should acquire as I feel it is a deeply personal decision.

If you wish. I hope you weren't trying to point out a way this could "backfire".

Clodfobble · 07-06-2004, 02:41 PM

"I might have been raising my voice, but I wasn’t screaming and yelling and waiving," she said... Now they (bystanders) were paying attention,

It sounds like this is where the "disorderly conduct" came into play. I suspect she was making a scene once the cops started questioning her, and was ultimately arrested for being belligerent, but wants to make it seem like she was arrested for what she was originally doing.

glatt · 07-06-2004, 02:51 PM

Good point. But is talking loudly to cops disorderly conduct?

Happy Monkey · 07-06-2004, 02:53 PM

Well, if people can be arrested for wearing anti-Bush T-shirts, backtalk could be a felony.

SteveDallas · 07-06-2004, 03:13 PM

So Radar, you really think the free speech right of a random individual off the street trumps the property rights of the owner? Doesn't this constitute an unjust taking of the owner's property (albeit temporarily) for a use of which he doesn't approve? Does the answer change if a) the location is different (let's say a supermarket, or a gas station, or a private residence) rather than a movie theater? Does it change if the "speech" involved is different? (we already tossed out gun permits.. what about gym memberships? library card applications? A blood pressure screening?)

Radar · 07-06-2004, 05:12 PM

Our rights don't change depending on whose property we're on. We have the right to free speech anyplace we are. If the owner of the property you're on dislikes what you're saying, they may ask you to leave their property and in this case that's what happened and the lady complied with the request and left.

Nobody had thier rights violated.

07-06-2004, 01:25 PM	#1
Radar Constitutional Scholar Join Date: Dec 2002 Location: Ocala, FL Posts: 4,006	Woman Arrested at Fahrenheit 9/11 Showing... http://www.allaroundphilly.com/site/news.c..._id=17782&rfi=6 Woman cited for passing out voter registration forms GINA ZOTTI, Staff Writer 06/29/2004 EAST CALN -- She said she didn’t scream fire in a crowded theater. All she did was hand out voter registration forms to movie patrons on their way out of the controversial film "Fahrenheit 9/11" on Saturday night. Because of that, Lani Frank, of Easttown, doesn’t understand why -- or feel it was right -- that she was handcuffed and cited at the Regal Cinemas by police. State police said Frank was in a place of business and causing a disturbance. They said she refused to leave and, for that, was cited for disorderly conduct. The citation, much like one a person would receive for a traffic violation, is a summary offense. But, Frank contends that she was not making a disturbance and was on her way to her car before police motioned her back to ask her questions. The police arrived after Frank had a discussion with a manager and security guard at the theater, she said. Frank was inside handing out the forms to movie-goers on their way out of the sold-out 7:50 p.m. shows Saturday night. "I was handing out the forms in the theater, but I was not making any mention of party affiliation or candidates," she said. "I never said anything negative to anyone." Frank said there were many people who took the forms and many who thanked her for making them available. She said that on her way into the theater, she saw another woman who was handing out the forms but had run out. "Everybody’s been doing it all over the place," Frank said. "For them to have stopped me from doing it seemed improper and that’s why I didn’t leave." From California to Florida, there were reports of other voter registration drives during the opening weekend of the Michael Moore film. The movie, which gives Moore’s take on what happened to the country after the events of Sept. 11, 2001, and how the Bush administration used the event to push what he said was its agenda to go to war with Iraq, brought in $21.6 million in the box office this weekend, despite only playing at 848 theaters nationwide. Still in the theater lobby, as the crowds were making their way outside, Frank said she was approached by the theater manager and told she wasn’t allowed to be doing what she was doing because she was on private property. She said she told the man that she was not handing out any campaign literature, and the group, including Frank’s husband, walked out together -- she contends she was not escorted out but was leaving regardless. She said she continued outside with her husband and chatted with friends on the way to the car when troopers called her over to speak. They took her license and information and she said she asked why she was not allowed to hand out the forms if she was outside on public property. "I might have been raising my voice, but I wasn’t screaming and yelling and waiving," she said. On the contrary, she said she believed the "very nature" of the police being at the theater is what caused the disruption. "Now they (bystanders) were paying attention, before they were just chit-chatting with friends," she said. "They started to get curious." Frank was handcuffed and brought to the Embreeville barracks where she was given a citation for disorderly conduct with the intent to create a public inconvenience, annoyance or alarm. "They didn’t need to take me into custody. I wasn’t inciting a riot," she said. Frank said that she intends to fight the citation on principle that she should not have been required to leave at all because of her actions in handing out the forms. "My assumption is that what I did was not legally wrong," she said. "If I’m found to be incorrect, I’ll pay the fine and say I’m sorry. But, I don’t believe I’m wrong ..I think they overreacted." Acting alone in handing out the forms, not with Democratic committee, Frank said she was enjoying the night out with her husband and friends. While she assumed those who attended the movie would be sympathetic to her political viewsand the way she would vote, Frank said her main objective was to encourage people to vote regardless of their party affiliation. Frank said she is against the war in Iraq and felt the citizens of the country have been misled on the government’s reasons for going to war. __________________ "I'm completely in favor of the separation of Church and State. My idea is that these two institutions screw us up enough on their own, so both of them together is certain death." - George Carlin

07-06-2004, 02:02 PM	#4
Radar Constitutional Scholar Join Date: Dec 2002 Location: Ocala, FL Posts: 4,006	She wasn't causing a disturbance and wasn't harming anyone. The theater manager asked her to leave and she was doing that right after she finished. She didn't even suggest which party people should register under. How is handing out voter registration forms a political protest? How is it a disturbance? How is it anything that could be construed as disorderly conduct? If anything the theater manager should have thanked her for providing a service to his patrons. __________________ "I'm completely in favor of the separation of Church and State. My idea is that these two institutions screw us up enough on their own, so both of them together is certain death." - George Carlin

07-06-2004, 02:05 PM	#5
Troubleshooter The urban Jane Goodall Join Date: Jan 2004 Location: Florida Posts: 3,012	If she waited until she finished to leave and he had asked her to leave before that then she was in the act of trespassing. The rest was a bit much though. __________________ I have gained this from philosophy: that I do without being commanded what others do only from fear of the law. - Aristotle

07-06-2004, 02:09 PM	#6
Radar Constitutional Scholar Join Date: Dec 2002 Location: Ocala, FL Posts: 4,006	She wasn't charge with trespass and it's doubtful she could have been since she left right after she was asked to leave. She continued handing out registration forms while explaining to the manager that she wasn't handing out campaign literature, and wasn't promoting any candidates or political parties, etc. By the time the conversation was over, she left of her own accord. __________________ "I'm completely in favor of the separation of Church and State. My idea is that these two institutions screw us up enough on their own, so both of them together is certain death." - George Carlin

07-06-2004, 02:09 PM	#7
Beestie -◊\|≡·∙■·∙≡\|◊- Join Date: Feb 2003 Location: Parts unknown. Posts: 4,081	Fine. I'll start passing out gun permit applications after the showing of Bowling for Columbine. I won't even tell folks which type of gun they should acquire as I feel it is a deeply personal decision. __________________ ♠ ♥ ♣ ♦

07-06-2004, 01:54 PM	#3
glatt ™ Join Date: Jul 2003 Location: Arlington, VA Posts: 27,717	Sure, but then the charge should be "trespassing" not "disorderly conduct with the intent to create a public inconvenience, annoyance or alarm." The second one sounds more like a picket line. She was just passing out papers. Not blocking anyone.

07-06-2004, 02:17 PM	#9
Radar Constitutional Scholar Join Date: Dec 2002 Location: Ocala, FL Posts: 4,006	I'd have no problem with that at all, although I don't know of many theaters still showing that movie. __________________ "I'm completely in favor of the separation of Church and State. My idea is that these two institutions screw us up enough on their own, so both of them together is certain death." - George Carlin

07-06-2004, 02:41 PM	#11
Clodfobble UNDER CONDITIONAL MITIGATION Join Date: Mar 2004 Location: Austin, TX Posts: 20,012	"I might have been raising my voice, but I wasn’t screaming and yelling and waiving," she said... Now they (bystanders) were paying attention, It sounds like this is where the "disorderly conduct" came into play. I suspect she was making a scene once the cops started questioning her, and was ultimately arrested for being belligerent, but wants to make it seem like she was arrested for what she was originally doing.

07-06-2004, 02:51 PM	#12
glatt ™ Join Date: Jul 2003 Location: Arlington, VA Posts: 27,717	Good point. But is talking loudly to cops disorderly conduct?

07-06-2004, 02:53 PM	#13
Happy Monkey I think this line's mostly filler. Join Date: Jan 2003 Location: DC Posts: 13,575	Well, if people can be arrested for wearing anti-Bush T-shirts, backtalk could be a felony. __________________ _________________ \|...............\| We live in the nick of times. \| Len 17, Wid 3 \| \|_______________\| [pics]

07-06-2004, 03:13 PM	#14
SteveDallas Your Bartender Join Date: Jan 2002 Location: Philly Burbs, PA Posts: 7,651	So Radar, you really think the free speech right of a random individual off the street trumps the property rights of the owner? Doesn't this constitute an unjust taking of the owner's property (albeit temporarily) for a use of which he doesn't approve? Does the answer change if a) the location is different (let's say a supermarket, or a gas station, or a private residence) rather than a movie theater? Does it change if the "speech" involved is different? (we already tossed out gun permits.. what about gym memberships? library card applications? A blood pressure screening?)

07-06-2004, 05:12 PM	#15
Radar Constitutional Scholar Join Date: Dec 2002 Location: Ocala, FL Posts: 4,006	Our rights don't change depending on whose property we're on. We have the right to free speech anyplace we are. If the owner of the property you're on dislikes what you're saying, they may ask you to leave their property and in this case that's what happened and the lady complied with the request and left. Nobody had thier rights violated. __________________ "I'm completely in favor of the separation of Church and State. My idea is that these two institutions screw us up enough on their own, so both of them together is certain death." - George Carlin

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