Court upholds denial of permit for Mace demonstration this weekend

A federal court judge late this afternoon rejected a request from protest organizers to overturn a permit denial from the City of Charleston that would have allowed a demonstration of 300 protestors against District One Congresswoman Nancy Mace on Saturday as thousands of spectators are attending the Credit One Charleston Open semifinals two-and-a-half blocks away.

South Carolina District Court Judge David C. Norton issued a ruling upholding the city's decision to deny the "Ace Mace Justice Reform" demonstration writing, "Not only has the City offered reasonable, content-neutral justifications for its decisions, it has also left open ample alternatives for communication by permitting plaintiffs to protest the following weekend in a different location approximately 100 yards away, where there is a sidewalk."

"Because the City’s application of its ordinance appears to be narrowly tailored to serve its significant government interests, the City has left open ample alternatives for communication, and the City acted in accordance with the ordinance’s objective standards to guide the licensing authority, the court finds that plaintiffs are not likely to succeed on the merits of their as-applied challenge."

Protesters had wanted to demonstrate on the sidewalk in front of the Daniel Island office of Nancy Mace at the corner of River landing drive and Island Park drive.

But the city said that location was unsafe stating that the front of 900 Island Park Drive has no curb or safety barrier to protect protestors from an unintentional or intentional car collision.

The city suggested an alternate location for the protest - in an open field adjacent to Mace's office and New Realm Brewery that also has a sidewalk.

In addition, the city denied the permit because of "the exhaustion of police resources on perhaps the busiest day of the year for the City of Charleston Police Department the Saturday of the Cooper River Bridge and the Credit One Tennis Tournament,"

The city said the majority of CPD would be patrolling downtown early morning through the late afternoon as 40,000-plus participants and thousands of more supporters would be taking part in the bridge run.

Protest organizer William J. Hamilton III argued the decision to move the protest to an alternate date and location was a flat-out rejection of the First Amendment.

"The City of Charleston is saying tourism is more important than freedom of speech," Hamilton told Norton this morning.

Hamilton requested the court issue a mandatory injunction to effectively overturn the permit denial and allow the protest to go on in front of Mace's office.

"This is just an excuse to push us out of the way because wealthy and powerful people want us pushed out of the way," Hamilton told reporters outside the courtroom.

Hamilton said the city's alternate requests were an attempt to shield the demonstration's anti-Trump and anti-Mace message to the thousands walking by during the tournament.

Hamilton said a protest would still take place Saturday with 25 protestors across the street from the Credit One Stadium as the smaller number would not require a city permit.