Dancing With Thomas Jefferson

Two weeks ago the US Court of Appeals for the DC Circuit ruled that the US Park Police did not act unconstitutionally when they arrested Mary Brooke Oberwetter for dancing silently with 17 of her friends inside the Jefferson Memorial.  According to the court, "the Park Service has a substantial interest in promoting a tranquil environment at our national memorials. (citation omitted). Here the government has reasonably advanced its interest in tranquility because . . .  the restriction on expressive activity does not sweep beyond the actual Memorial space. Outside the Jefferson Memorial, of course, Oberwetter and her friends have always been free to dance to their hearts’content."

Read the opinion here.