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Jul 29, 2008 3:42 pm US/Central
Trial Begins On DNC Protest Plans
Denver, Colo. (AP) ―
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The Democratic National Convention will be in Denver in Aug. of 2008.
CBS
Protesters argued they should be able to get within sight and earshot of delegates to the Democratic National Convention as a trial in a lawsuit challenging designated parade routes and demonstration zones got under way Tuesday.
Thomas Mestnik of Recreate 68, which plans at least five marches during convention week, said free speech means a group can be within sight and sound of where it wants its message to be delivered.
The American Civil Liberties Union of Colorado and more than a dozen advocacy groups argue in the suit against Denver and the Secret Service that the parade route and demonstration zone mapped out by the city keep protesters from being seen or heard by delegates entering the Pepsi Center, where the convention begins Aug. 25.
Denver's plan would allow protesters to get as close as a parking lot on the Pepsi Center's grounds during the first three days of the convention and they would have to leave by 3 p.m., about the time delegates are expected to begin arriving each day.
The last day of the convention will be held at Invesco Field. A hearing on a plan to keep protesters at the stadium property's border will be held Aug. 12.
In similar lawsuits in Minnesota, where the Republican National Convention will be held Sept. 1-4, a federal judge rejected one protest group's attempt to get closer to the Xcel Energy Center.
Judge Joan Ericksen sided with police and St. Paul city leaders, saying government officials have security reasons to justify the restrictions on the permit for the Coalition to March on the RNC and Stop the War. The group plans to march on first day of the convention. A city permit keeps marchers at least 84 feet away from the arena's doors and orders them to clear the streets around the arena by midafternoon -- before the convention begins. The coalition is expecting 30,000 to 50,000 people to participate.
In court Tuesday in Denver, Recreate 68 co-founder Mark Cohen said visual images captured by the media during the marches would not display protesters in relationship to the Pepsi Center.
"There will be no visual connection between the parade and the Pepsi Center, making it appear we would be marching with no purpose in mind," he said.
Tent State University, which says ending the Iraq war would allow for better funding of education, also plans to march during the DNC. It hopes to start its march near the Pepsi Center as opposed to ending there, as the city's route outlines, because Tent State members would like to symbolically turn their backs on the Democratic Party.
Joanna Pease of Tent State University said the party's leaders are not listening to the youth of America.
The Secret Service was testifying Tuesday afternoon.
(© 2009 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)
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