BERKELEY Woman honking mad over citation - She was ticketed for beeping horn to support pickets

San Francisco Chronicle ^ | 4/23/5 | Patrick Hoge

[SmithL]

Berkeley may be the home of the Free Speech Movement, but expressing emotion with a car horn is apparently not a protected form of communication there.

An Oakland woman alleges that Berkeley police violated her First Amendment rights when an officer ticketed her last year for honking in support of a labor union's picketing outside the Claremont Resort and Spa to protest rising health care costs and other issues.

Carol Harris, 51, is appealing her $143 "unreasonable use of horn'' citation to Berkeley's Police Review Commission, which will consider the case on Thursday.

Harris was among nearly 40 motorists who received tickets beginning shortly before midnight on Aug. 27 for allegedly violating a California Vehicle Code section prohibiting the use of horns except "when reasonably necessary to insure safe operation'' of vehicles or as part of a theft- prevention system.

"I was so p -- off, I burst out laughing. I said, 'You've got to be kidding,' '' Harris said in a taped interview when recalling her reaction to being stopped by Berkeley Police Officer Thomas Grove.

Harris said in an interview Friday that she pointed out to Grove that some of the demonstrators carried signs urging passers-by to honk, and Grove told her that police did not have authority to regulate the signs -- because that is a protected form of speech.

"That's the clincher. It's my First Amendment right to voice my opinion, I believe,'' Harris said.

[SmithL]

I am becoming more and more convinced that the sole purpose of Berkeley is to entertain the rest of the Country.

[Aleighanne]

what about the rights of the people who have to hear all 40 honk their horns?

[kingattax]

LOL..this is toooooo funny

[kromike]

True, but the scary reality is that these fools are deadly serious.

[Larry Lucido]

Someone should remind the woman that her fellow libs passed the anti-noise law for The Children. Surely she supports The Children, doesn't she? If the protesters said "light up if you support us," would she have lit one up? Dilemmas, dilemmas.

[scott says]

Berkeley!!!!!

[BillCompton]

Hmmmm. I think I have to side with her. This really was, apparently, done in support of a political statement. There is no sign it was harrassment. Of course, being in the 9th Judicial Circuit, they probably would create a new right to own a government provided horn for homeless people so they may exercise their rights.

[kingattax]

ROFL...good one !!!

[ozzymandus]

Feel-good story of the day!

[Horatio Gates]

Carol Harris, 51, is appealing her $143 "unreasonable use of horn'' citation to Berkeley's Police Review Commission,

What happended to just contesting the ticket in muni court? Or do they just do it differently in Berkely?

[Cultural Jihad]

Harris said . . . that some of the demonstrators carried signs urging passers-by to honk, . . .

Well, supposedly since they told her to break the law that makes it allowable. (sheesh)

[SmithL]

Or do they just do it differently in Berkely?

They do everything differently there.

[Cultural Jihad]

Linked:
http://www.claremontresort.com

[Mrs. Shawnlaw]

Since the cops/firemen/emergency personnel are union in our area they would never ever ticket honk-support of union picketers.
Our family rolls down the windows and yells 'go to work, go to work...'

[scott says]

I lived in Berkeley in the early 80's. I remember going down Telegraph Avenue, all the street merchants, artists, hippie dippy jokesters...I came upon a hippie dude with a table full of way left leaning bumper stickers, you know the ones...I said real LOUD--you got one that says "The Sixties are Over-GROW UP!!"

[Mannaggia l'America]

"That's the clincher. It's my First Amendment right to voice my opinion, I believe,'' Harris said.

Then why didn't she use her voice instead of her horn? But for some reason, I bet this woman's voice sounds just like her car horn....

[B4Ranch]

"violating a California Vehicle Code section prohibiting the use of horns except "when reasonably necessary to insure safe operation'' of vehicles or as part of a theft- prevention system."

Using your automotive horn to express support for protesters isn't what it was designed for.

[scab4faa]

Everyone seems to have over looked the fact it was shortly before midnight. I would bet that there are noise ordinances also. If this is anywhere near a residential area and they were blowing thier horns shortly before midnight near my home. A ticket would be the least of their problems.

[tahiti]

"What happended to just contesting the ticket in muni court? Or do they just do it differently in Berkely?"

I live in Des Peres, Mo.

About a year and half ago, I also was given a ticket for "unlawful use of my horn" because I was tapping on my horn in order to entice a motorist in front of me to use the acceleration ramp to merge into traffic instead of coming to a complete stop and waiting until there was no other vehicle to be seen before accelerating from a dead stop to merge into traffic.

I did contest the ticket in municipal court and the judge dismissed it.

Then about a half a year ago, union supermarket workers were on strike and picketing in front of a local supermarket, Schnuck's.

Supporters of the union's picketing would drive by and blare their horns in support of the union.

I went to the Des Peres police station and spoke to the chief of police and asked him to send a patrol car out to the supermarket site and begin citing all of the vehicles blaring their horns "unlawfully" in support of the pickets.

The chief refused.

Talk about "equal protection under the law."

[aculeus]

"That's the clincher. It's my First Amendment right to voice my opinion, I believe,'' Harris said.

The heck with the sleeping children awakened by your stupid late night horn blowing.

Aculeus's rule: Always cross a picket line.

BTW The Claremont is a lovely hotel.