If America's constitution often seems a dead letter, there yet remains an unambigious first amendment right to give the police a piece of your mind—and the finger. Vermont cops who arrested one man there for doing so have put the state, and its taxpayers, on the hook for $175,000 for the illegal arrest.
The lawsuit was filed in 2021 by the ACLU of Vermont on behalf of Gregory Bombard, of St. Albans. It says Bombard's First Amendment rights were violated after an unnecessary traffic stop and retaliatory arrest in 2018. He was jailed for over an hour and cited to criminal court, according to the ACLU. The charge was eventually dismissed.Under the settlement signed by the parties this month, the state has agreed to pay Bombard $100,000 and $75,000 to the ACLU of Vermont and the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression for legal fees.
You'd think it would be cheaper to train 'n' rein these officers, but no expense is spared when it comes to law enforcement.
