Considering all of the things that are considered protected speech under the First Amendment, it’s a little surprising to learn that, no, you can’t jump the White House fence and claim free expression.
NEW: DC Judge rules against CT man who jumped White House fence. Dismisses claim that fence jump was "free speech" pic.twitter.com/TebW4Vnvia
— Scott MacFarlane (@MacFarlaneNews) August 25, 2016
NBC 4’s Scott MacFarlane reports Thursday that a judge in Washington, D.C., ruled against a Connecticut man who jumped the White House fence on Thanksgiving Day 2015 while wearing an American flag over his shoulders.
Joseph Caputo argued that he entered the White House grounds with the “noble purpose” of “calling attention to various deficiencies in the Constitution.” He has been charged with a misdemeanor count of unlawfully entering restricted government grounds and faces a trial next month.
“There is, after all, no First Amendment right to express one’s self in a nonpublic area like the White House,” the judge determined.
That wasn’t the only White House fence news today. Caputo might have though he was drawing attention to domestic issues, but at least he wasn’t there to collect prize winnings.
BREAKING: Bowie, Md man arrested for scaling White House security barrier. Police: Told agents he came to collect $$ pic.twitter.com/T3dkHjKaV2
— Scott MacFarlane (@MacFarlaneNews) August 25, 2016
He came to D.C. to collect money from the government? That’s not how it works at all.
Court filings: Md man charged w/ climbing White House security barrier said he was there to collect $$, heard name on "radio station 93.9"
— Scott MacFarlane (@MacFarlaneNews) August 25, 2016
Ryan Cain, 22, pleaded not guilty on Thursday to a charge of illegal entry.
The Secret Service plans to raise the White House fence another 5 feet in 2018.
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