|
Court to decide whether campus evangelism a crime
Charlie Butts – OneNewsNow – 11/23/2008 5:00:00 AM
The so-called “free-speech code” of Yuba Community College District is under federal court scrutiny.
California
student, Ryan Dozier, decided to spend some time on campus sharing his
faith and handing out tracts to fellow students, generating
conversations about Christianity. Alliance Defense Fund (ADF) attorney Heather Hacker comments on the situation.
“A campus police officer came over and told him that if he continued to
do so without a permit that he would be possibly expelled or arrested,
and so Ryan stopped immediately,” she explains.
Hacker says Dozier thought the case was closed, but he was apparently
mistaken. “Three weeks later he got a certified letter from the
president of the college stating that his actions were the subject of a
campus crime report,” she adds. “Last time I checked, sharing your
faith on a public college campus was not a crime.”
But the letter informed him he could face expulsion if he shared his
faith on campus again. ADF filed suit, and a federal judge has ordered
the college to suspend enforcement of its highly restricted free speech
policies until the lawsuit is resolved.
|