The head of the Department of Justice’s Civil Rights Division called a June video showing Fort Worth police officers threatening a pair of Christian preachers with a citation for offensive speech “troubling” and said her office would look into the matter.
Harmeet K. Dhillon responded to the viral clip of the events at an LGBT festival and said the “[civil rights team] is on it.”
The Fort Worth Police Department is reviewing the incident as well as allegations against the officers, who cited one of the preachers for disorderly conduct related to noise. The department says the citation was not issued for the content of the speech but for using a megaphone to amplify the preacher’s voice.
The department noted, “A video that has circulated online captures only a portion of the interactions between the officer and the individuals involved.” FWPD also acknowledged that an officer involved in the incident made inaccurate statements.
The City of Fort Worth Law Department plans to conduct a training session to provide officers with a refresher on First Amendment-protected speech in response to the events.
The incident occurred at the Trinity Pride Festival, which has drawn past criticism for being open to minors.
Officers quickly approached the preachers upon their arrival at the festival and denied them entry because of event barriers. One officer said their speech was offensive to others and could constitute disorderly conduct.
The pair protested that their demonstration was protected under the First Amendment.
David Grisham was ultimately cited for “unreasonable noise.”
When Richard Penskoski asked what the officers meant, they refused to give a clear standard, instead citing examples such as putting a megaphone in an individual’s ear, which Penskoski said did not occur because the device remained at waist level.
The video posted on June 27 quickly went viral on X, with many notable figures, including Elon Musk, weighing in.
Sergeant P.A. Vega of FWPD told The Dallas Express that the department is committed to protecting the constitutional rights of all individuals, including the right to free speech and peaceful assembly, while also ensuring public safety and enforcing applicable laws and ordinances. He said the department is aware of a video and allegations circulating on social media, needs time to review them, and will provide additional information once the review is complete.
