In a victory for their client, Joseph Hornick, Pryor Cashman Partner Eric Sherman, a member of the Litigation and Real Estate Groups, together with the ACLU of New Jersey successfully obtained a dismissal of a complaint which unconstitutionally restricted Mr. Hornick’s right to free speech.  

At issue in this case was a New Jersey ordinance which prohibited the display of political signs more than 30 days ahead of the State’s primary. Three months before the primary, Hornick was ticketed under the ordinance by police in his hometown of West Long Branch for flying a flag on his property which featured Donald Trump’s widely recognized “Make America Great Again!” slogan.  

Contending that the ordinance amounted to an unconstitutional restriction on their client’s First Amendment right to free speech, Sherman and the ACLU discussed the matter with Municipal Prosecutor, Gerald Massell, who voluntarily moved to dismiss the complaint. In granting the dismissal, Municipal Judge Louis Garippo, Jr. affirmed that Hornick’s flag did not amount to a political sign and therefore the “somewhat vague” ordinance did not apply. He dismissed the case “in the interest of justice.” 

In interviews following the hearing, Sherman emphasized the importance of protecting his client’s fundamental rights: “[Hornick] is entitled to continue to exercise his free speech rights and express his political views without worry that there’s an ordinance that says he can’t do so. There will be no more enforcement of this ordinance and the borough will go about the business of coming up with a different ordinance that does not offend the First Amendment.” 

Jeanne LoCicero, Deputy Legal Director of the ACLU-NJ, concurred adding “there’s no ordinance that can overrule the Constitution. It doesn’t matter whether it’s a lawn sign or a flag – you have the right to express your political beliefs every day of the year, no matter how close it is to Election Day.” 

Hornick, who was determined to keep his flag up in spite of the charges, stated that he felt vindicated by the court’s ruling: “I got justice today, and the First Amendment won.”  

As a result of the successful challenge mounted by Hornick and his attorneys in this matter, on June 1, 2016, two weeks after the complaint's dismissal, the West Long Branch Borough Council voted to repeal the ordinance.

For further background on this case, please click here.

Media coverage was provided by App.com, Fox News, Reuters, USA Today, WABC, WCBS, Metro US, New Jersey 101.5, NJ.com, Wordonetheshore.com, and other outlets.