It is in Mocanaqua, PA. According to timesleader.com report, Lona Scarpa, 35, who was nearly struck by a motorcycle rider was breaking the law when she cussed out the reckless driver.
The ACLU, on behalf of Lona Scarpa, 35, filed a lawsuit in federal court on Wednesday against the state police, which charged her with disorderly conduct in October 2008. She was acquitted of the summary offense in January 2009.
According to the lawsuit, Scarpa and her friend were walking on Railroad Street, Mocanaqua, when a man on a motorcycle swerved close to her and shouted an insult on Oct. 9, 2008. Scarpa yelled back, calling the biker an “a******” three times, the lawsuit says.
Naturally, although the whole focus of the story centers on what the woman said, the news report censors the actual word. Americans are so used to being shielded from even the most mild distress that they don’t even blink at this kind of absurdity.
The suit says Edwards told Scarpa that if he cited the motorcyclist, he would have to issue her a citation because the motorcyclist claimed she yelled the obscenity three times.
Scarpa received the citation in the mail, hired an attorney and was found not guilty of disorderly conduct.
This, of course, goes back to the philosophy that the First Amendment has exceptions and those exceptions now encompass the mere expression of anger. That this doesn’t trigger outrage on the part of the public is stunning, but the fact that law enforcement, which is sworn to uphold the Constitution actually sees no conflict in what they are doing here.
Is this a freak case? Apparently not.
The ACLU submitted a Right-to-Know request for disorderly conduct citations issued by state police from September 2008 to September 2009.
Troopers issued more than 770 disorderly conduct citations in that span that did not meet the legal definition of obscenity, the ACLU says.
I’m pretty certain it is quite common for law enforcement to treat foul language as disorderly conduct. People who think government respects free speech except in extreme circumstances are not paying attention.