Guardian Unlimited | World Latest | Judge Denies Inauguration Protests Suit: "Judge Denies Inauguration Protests Suit
Wednesday January 19, 2005 12:01 AM
AP Photo CAP105
By SAM HANANEL
Associated Press Writer
WASHINGTON (AP) - A federal judge ruled Tuesday against a group of protesters who claimed they are being unfairly excluded from major portions of President Bush's inaugural parade route.
U.S. District Judge Paul Friedman said the National Park Service has satisfied its obligation to allow demonstrators with the A.N.S.W.E.R. Coalition access to several locations along Pennsylvania Avenue on Thursday, including a large plaza with space for up to 10,000 protesters.
The lawsuit claimed the park service illegally blocked protesters and the general public from access to vast portions of Pennsylvania Avenue reserved solely for ticketed guests approved by the Presidential Inaugural Committee.
``It's clear the plaintiffs did not get the space they wanted, but they did get nine designated areas,'' Friedman said.
Friedman also denied a challenge to Secret Service restrictions that ban all signs from being affixed to poles or sticks. He said the ban is reasonable considering safety concerns.
In 2001, thousands of demonstrators were able to stand on sidewalks along the parade route, carrying signs and shouting slogans as Bush's motorcade passed. This year, however, the park service is excluding the public from most sidewalks and open spaces between and around bleachers.
A.N.S.W.E.R. attorney Mara Verheyden-Hilliard complained that most of the areas reserved for protesters are behind bleachers or set off hundreds of feet from the street.
The parade gets under way at 2 p.m. EST Thursday after Bush's swearing-in at the Capitol and a celebratory luncheon"