Yesterday, Iraq war veteran and Probation officer Azael Brodhead, was fined $166.20 for honking his horn in front of temporary Governor Walker’s home.
A Wisconsin state employee says his daily horn honking outside Gov. Scott Walker’s house in Wauwatosa is a matter of free speech.
But a Milwaukee County judge doesn’t see it that way.
A state trooper ticketed 36-year-old Azael Brodhead for noise violations after he drove by Walker’s house day after day, week after week, blowing his car horn, sticking his middle finger out of his sunroof and shouting “Recall Walker.”
Brodhead, a probation agent upset with Walker for trying to break up public employee unions, told the trooper he was simply exercising his First Amendment rights.
The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported a judge last week found no precedent for constitutionally protected horn honking and fined him $166.20.
Police said Brodhead used repeated profanities as he was ticketed, such as saying the troopers protected the “piece of [expletive] governor” and saying “your boss is a [expletive] [expletive].”
Brodhead still makes his daily drive past Walker’s house to shout his protest. Only now, he doesn’t use his horn.
So corporations giving millions to sway elections and buy politicians is “protected speech” and an Iraq war veteran honking his horn is not?
Editor’s Note: Ironically, this story just came out today, further proving the point.
A divided Supreme Court on Thursday swept aside decades of legislative restrictions on the role of corporations in political campaigns, ruling that companies can dip into their treasuries to spend as much as they want to support or oppose individual candidates.
So in 2011 American, Al Quada could set up a dummy corporation and give millions to US candidates secretly with no disclosure and no limits and no problem. Honk your horn and get a ticket. Very interesting!
What was he actually charged with? Disturbing the peace? Nuisance violation? Noise level after curfew?
You cannot be charged with “honking your horn”. What law was applied?
He was cited for illegal use of his horn, if I’m not mistaken. That is actually a statute, believe it or not.
Carpenter – Independent, Neither Democrat nor Republican, but an Objective Thinker
This was not a case of Free Speech. It was a case of Harassment. But the fellow probably will not be charged since the Governor would have to prefer charges.
The Honking is reminscent of the Horn-Blowing, the Chanting, the Drum-beating at the State Capitol by Protesters, Protesters who had NO Alternative to the Governor’s Bill which allocated the $66 Billion, balanced the budget, all without raising taxes. Also it blocked the Unions from their limiting the Flexibility needed by School Boards and Municipalities to avoid Layoffs. This has been successful except where there was a Rush to get Contracts with Unions. One example has been noted by the Democratic Madison Mayor who decried the Union Contract by his predecessor.
No, Honking, Drum-Beating, Chanting, Horn-Blowing cannot balance a budget with limited funds. Try Horm-Blowing, Chanting, Honking, Singing, Drum-beating to balance your budget at home. It won’t work.
The sad part is the number of people, VOTERS, who are either following Ideology, or just Not Thinking, or not being Intelligent. This is the sad part.
Carp…thanks for telling us how “independent” you are before your walker love fest.
Please tell me one school district in the state that balanced the budget without raising taxes. Tell me one place where the budget repair bill actually worked and where walker saved $66 billion dollars
Jeff Simpson – Objective Independent Thinker.
Noise violations? I think this guy has a chance to go up a level in court.
I’m sure robin vos is working on a fix as we speak.