Protest groups sue over rules at event
A coalition of antiabortion groups is asking a federal judge to toss out Boston's permitting process for would-be protesters at the Democratic National Convention, saying that the city's new guidelines are likely to be used to violate their First Amendment right to free speech.
In a lawsuit filed yesterday, the Christian Defense Coalition and two other organizations that oppose abortion say that guidelines Boston put in place for the convention could allow the city to effectively bar undesirable groups by indefinitely postponing the issuance of permits. In addition, city officials will be able to make "indiscriminate and arbitrary decisions" regarding which permits to grant and which to reject, the suit claims.
"They're crushing free speech," the Rev. Patrick J. Mahoney, director of the Christian Defense Coalition, said yesterday at a news conference in front of the federal courthouse in South Boston. "When I took a look at this permitting process, I was absolutely stunned and appalled."
The lawsuit is the first legal challenge to the city's plans for handling convention protests, but it is unlikely to be the last. Officials with the American Civil Liberties Union, the National Lawyers Guild, and the Boston Police Patrolmen's Association have complained publicly about the new permitting process, and are promising to take the city to court if protest applications are rejected.
The lawyers guild and the ACLU are also concerned that a "free-speech zone" city officials will designate for groups that wish to protest will be too small and too far away from the FleetCenter. After the groups complained, Boston officials amended their original plan in order to provide more space and an area closer to the arena's main entrance, but civil-liberties groups say they remain unconvinced that the area will be suitable for protesters come convention time.
City officials will not comment on yesterday's suit until city lawyers have a chance to review it, said Seth Gitell, a spokesman for Mayor Thomas M. Menino. US District Chief Judge William G. Young is scheduled to hear initial arguments on the antiabortion groups' case tomorrow.
The application process targeted by the suit was unveiled by the city last month, when it issued guidelines for groups interested in holding protests or other public events from July 24 through Aug. 1. (The convention runs July 26-29.) Boston officials said the guidelines are intended to streamline the permit application process and help the city keep tabs on events during a hectic week. But critics say they give the city wider discretion to deny permits and potentially keep some groups away by extending the approval process from what is currently about three days to a month or even longer.
Normally, groups apply directly to the city agencies whose approval they need for their protests, with the process taking less than 72 hours to complete. But for the convention, Boston is having all protesters first apply through the Office of Consumer Affairs and Licensing, then go to the individual city agencies, and then go back to Consumer Affairs and Licensing for final approval. Because the agencies are under no time constraints in issuing permits, groups could see their applications delayed indefinitely, the suit says.
Under the city's convention week guidelines, applications can be rejected for reasons including a scheduling conflict with a planned city event, an applicant's outstanding debt to the city, or an "unreasonable danger to the health and safety" of the public, as determined by city officials. The antiabortion groups are concerned that permits could be rejected based on political motivations.
"The City of Boston wants a sanitized convention," Mahoney said.
This week, Mahoney's group and other organizations that oppose abortion applied to the city for seven protest permits for the week of the convention. Among other sites, they are planning rallies and events near Faneuil Hall, on Park Street near the State House, on Causeway Street near the FleetCenter, and outside Senator John F. Kerry's Louisburg Square home.
The groups are asking that the city return to its normal process of issuing permits to protesters, or adopt the guidelines used by the National Park Service for events in the Washington, D.C., area. Under those guidelines, groups normally have their applications reviewed within 24 hours of applying, so they can immediately begin working with park service officials to make sure everything is in order.
Rick Klein can be reached at rklein@globe.com. 
