A Florida man has won a lawsuit against Walton County after the country fined him $50 for each day he displayed Donald Trump banners.
Santa Rosa Beach resident Marvin Peavy was charged $63,000 over several years for violating a scenic corridor code, WJHG reports. According to the policy, political banners may only be displayed during election years. Peavy has hung banners since 2020 reading “Trump 2020,” “Trump Now, Trump Won,” “You missed Trump 2024,″ and “Bulletproof.”
“Their laws cannot supersede my First Amendment right, so they came after my constitutional rights, which they cannot do. It really woke me up as a patriot,” Peavy told reporters last November. “I’m very proud that they woke me up now, that I know what I know, because this made more people stand up with fighting for what’s right.”
“I’m very happy that they came after me and I woke up, I’ve got great lawyers,” he added. “We feel very good about what’s going on. The US Supreme Court has already ruled that you can have signs on your home. They cannot do anything about it.”
First Judicial Circuit Court Judge Jeffrey Lewis ruled that Peavy could continue displaying the banners and canceled the fines. Walton County must also pay Peavy $42,000 within 10 days of the ruling.
A similar First Amendment victory was received by Carrollton, Ohio residents after they were told to remove political signs.
“On behalf of our clients, the ACLJ sent a demand letter to the village of Carrollton, demanding that it stop enforcing this unconstitutional ordinance and preventing our clients from displaying political signs in their yard. Only one day after receiving our letter, the village of Carrollton responded and agreed to meet our demands – a major victory for free speech,” the American Center for Law and Justice said.
