The U.S. Supreme Court declared in 1987 that "the freedom of individuals verbally to oppose or challenge police action without thereby risking arrest" is one of the chief distinctions separating "a free nation from a police state." Some officials apparently needed a reminder about that, and this month the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana provided it.
The court ruled that St. Tammany Parish Sheriff Randy Smith, Chief Danny Culpeper, and Sgt. Keith Canizaro violated clearly established law when they arrested and attempted to publicly humiliate a man for criticizing one of the department's investigations.
