United States Seventh Circuit

In a civil rights action against a police officer claiming violations of free speech rights and lack of probable cause to make an arrest, summary judgment for defendant is affirmed where: 1) for purposes of a Fourteenth Amendment claim, officer had probable cause to arrest plaintiff since his actions qualified as disorderly conduct under Illinois law; 2) tombstone inscriptions in a Halloween display were insulting, but they could not be considered "fighting words" under that doctrine; 3) although the display was protected speech, the officer's mistake about the scope of plaintiffs' constitutional right to ridicule their neighbors was one a reasonable officer might make; and 4) thus, officer was entitled to qualified immunity on the First Amendment claim.

Appellate Information

• Argued 04/04/2007
• Decided 05/14/2008
• Published 05/14/2008

Judges

• SYKES, Circuit Judge., Before KANNE, WILLIAMS, and SYKES, Circuit Judges.

Court

• United States Seventh Circuit

Counsel

• For Appellant:
  
• John R. Wimmer (argued), Downers Grove, IL, for Plaintiffs-Appellants.


• For Appellees:
  
• James L. DeAno (argued) DeAno & Scarry, Wheaton, IL, for Defendant-Appellee.