Village officials slam door on man distributing Christian literature

MILWAUKEE — Attorneys with the Alliance Defense Fund filed a lawsuit in federal court Friday to strike down a Kewaskum village ordinance that severely restricts the constitutional right to free speech and religious freedom.

“Christians should not be penalized for expressing their beliefs,” said ADF Senior Counsel Nate Kellum.  “Exercising your First Amendment rights is not a crime.  Our client simply wanted to quietly leave religious literature on door handles of city residents without bothering anyone, yet the city denied him even this most basic exercise of his constitutional right to free speech.”

On April 25, 2007, Michael Foht went to two neighborhoods in the village of Kewaskum to place flyers sharing his Christian beliefs on the door handles of residences.  After receiving a complaint from one of the residents, a Kewaskum police officer informed Foht that a local ordinance prohibited him from distributing the information.  The officer informed him that he would be fined $172 every time he was found in violation of the ordinance, and might even face arrest.  Foht has not returned to the village to distribute his literature.

“It’s our hope that the court will strike down this overly broad ordinance and allow Mr. Foht and others to once again distribute literature to village residents,” said Kellum.

ADF is a legal alliance defending the right to hear and speak the Truth through strategy, training, funding, and litigation.