Victory in Georgia: Charged Gospel Preacher Vindicated – ACLJ Files Lawsuit To End Leftist Veto Power Over Free Speech

Jason Cantrell just wanted to share the Gospel. Standing on a public sidewalk outside an abortion clinic in Forest Park, Georgia, he did what Gospel preachers have done for centuries: He opened his Bible, raised his voice, and spoke to those who passed by. He even did everything the city asked: He obtained a sound permit before using his small amplification device. He followed the rules.

Then someone complained. And just like that, the city shut him down.

That’s not how the First Amendment is supposed to work. And thanks to the ACLJ, a Georgia court has now agreed.

Jason was on public property. He was not obstructing anyone. He was simply exercising his constitutionally protected right to free speech and religious expression. Officers approached and cited him for “using amplification devices,” claiming he had been asked three times to lower his volume. But here’s the critical detail: The problem was never that Jason’s amplification was too loud – that was never shown. The problem wasn’t that he lacked a permit. He had one. The problem was what was written in the permit itself.

Forest Park’s sound permit contains a clause stating that it becomes “null and void” the moment any complaint is received about the noise level. In other words, the city had built a “heckler’s veto” directly into its permitting scheme. Any passerby, any counter-protester, anyone who simply didn’t like what Jason was saying could silence him on the spot just by complaining.

Jason faced a misdemeanor charge in Forest Park Municipal Court. The ACLJ took his case.

The Policy Is Unconstitutional

The First Amendment does not permit the government to silence a speaker because someone else objects to his message. That principle, the prohibition on so-called “heckler’s vetoes,” is among the most foundational in American free speech law.

The Supreme Court addressed this directly in Forsyth County v. Nationalist Movement, striking down a local ordinance that allowed officials to vary permit fees based on how controversial the speech at issue was. The Court was unambiguous: A permit scheme that gives government officials the power to restrict speech based on the response of listeners is unconstitutional on its face.

Forest Park’s practice goes even further than those cases. Rather than adjusting fees based on reaction, the city wrote into its permit a clause that automatically extinguishes a speaker’s rights the moment anyone lodges a complaint. This is a fundamental misunderstanding of the First Amendment. Our Bill of Rights exists to protect controversial speech.

As the Supreme Court has stated, “[A] function of free speech under our system of government is to invite dispute. It may indeed best serve its high purpose when it induces a condition of unrest, creates dissatisfaction with conditions as they are, or even stirs people to anger.”

Certainly, the abortion clinic and passersby were stirred to anger, and it’s no surprise that this abortion clinic did not care for our client’s speech. But abortionists cannot turn their dissatisfaction into a tool for censorship.

Take action with the ACLJ and help us defeat the Left’s war on freedom: Sign our petition.

The Victory: Charges Dismissed

On Wednesday, Jason walked out of Forest Park Municipal Court with his case dismissed.

When the moment of truth arrived, the city entered a nolle prosequi – a formal declaration that it would not proceed with the prosecution. After the ACLJ filed comprehensive motions to dismiss, laying out in precise legal detail exactly why the Forest Park permitting practices cannot survive First Amendment scrutiny. The city faced a choice: proceed to a hearing and defend the indefensible or stand down. It stood down.

It was a quiet moment in a municipal courtroom, but it was a victory – and Jason could breathe a little easier knowing that on this day, the law stood with him.

The Fight Continues: Filing Suit To Strike Down the Ordinance

But a dismissed case is not the end of this story. It’s the beginning of the next chapter.

Forest Park still is issuing these fundamentally flawed permits. The “null and void upon complaint” clause still sits in every sound permit the city issues. Jason, or any other preacher or pro-life advocate, could face the exact same situation tomorrow.

That’s why the ACLJ is moving forward with a civil rights lawsuit to have this practice declared unconstitutional and permanently enjoined. Jason deserves more than a dismissal. He deserves a ruling. And so does every person in Forest Park who wants to stand on a public sidewalk and speak freely without living in fear that a single complaint will silence them.

The First Amendment means nothing if the government can build veto power into a permit for anyone who objects. We intend to make sure that never happens to Jason – or anyone else – again. Take action with the ACLJ and help us defeat the Left’s war on freedom: Sign our petition.

The ACLJ is representing Jason Cantrell free of charge. If you want to join him in this fight for the rights of anti-abortion activists to speak and preach freely in the public square, you can stand with Jason by becoming an ACLJ Member or Champion today and support this case directly.