A federal court sided with the City of Bloomington this week in a lawsuit brought against the city by the owners of the Schooner Creek Farm.
Sarah Dye and Douglas Mackey filed the lawsuit in 2020.
They argued that Mayor John Hamilton, parks department official Paula McDevitt and former department official Marcia Veldman violated their First Amendment rights at the Bloomington Community Farmer’s Market.
Conflict at the market started in 2019 after Dye’s ties to a white supremacist group became public. Multiple protests and demonstrations followed.
Mayor Hamilton decided to shut the market down for two weeks in July 2020, citing public safety concerns.
Dye and Mackey argued in the lawsuit that the city selectively enforced market rules regarding free speech. They said the city sided with protesters who opposed them while prohibiting Schooner Creek Farm from making political statements.
However, the city did arrest protesters at the market who were speaking out against Schooner Creek Farm’s presence.
District Court Judge Richard Young rejected all of Dye and Mackey’s allegations.
Dkt. 83 by Indiana Public Media News on Scribd
