US Appeals Court rules Indiana police cannot enforce 25-foot buffer law

INDIANAPOLIS - A United States Court of Appeals ruled that Indiana cannot enforce its 25-foot buffer law, which granted police officers the authority to order individuals to stay 25 feet away while they perform official duties or face a potential arrest and misdemeanor charge.




The buffer law has faced several legal challenges since being passed into law in July 2023. The ACLU of Indiana argued the law prevents officers from being held accountable while stripping citizens of their right to "observe and record the police."




A coalition of media organizations and news outlets challenged the buffer law, arguing that it caused irreparable harm to newsgathering activities. In a lawsuit brought forth by the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press, the media organizations argued that the law is unconstitutionally vague under the Fourteenth Amendment's Due Process Clause.




Both a district court and the U.S. Court of Appeals agreed that the plaintiffs would likely succeed in arguing that the buffer law was unconstitutionally vague. Both courts also agreed that the plaintiffs have demonstrated how journalism has suffered due to the law.




"Given the buffer law's chilling effect on some journalists' speech, and other journalists' intentions to continuing recording police activity, we agree with the district court that the plaintiffs have demonstrated injury in fact," the court of appeals wrote.




The Court of Appeals also argued the buffer law is unconstitutionally vague due to a lack of exact guidance, which encourages "arbitrary or discriminatory enforcement" by law officers. Suppose an officer or the individual approaching them is unaware of the exact 25 feet, and the officer is not instructed with exact guidance on when to issue the warning to stay back. This creates a susceptibility to arbitrary and discriminatory enforcement at the officer's whim.

"We asked counsel to explain when an officer could invoke the buffer law to tell someone to stop approaching. The answer? "If an officer is conducting their official duties, an officer may tell someone to stop approaching." For any reason? A good reason, a bad reason, a reason the officer just makes up? "Yes." Could an officer invoke the buffer law just because he had a bad breakfast? Again, counsel answered in the affirmative. These responses highlight the problem."

U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit

In ordering the buffer law to be enjoined, meaning the state is prohibited from enforcing it, the U.S. Court of Appeals also remanded the case back to the district court. This means the district court, which has already issued an injunction of the buffer law, will consider whether a narrower injunction is appropriate.




Editor's Note: Nexstar Media Inc. - the company that owns numerous Indiana TV stations like FOX59, CBS4 and WANE15 - is among the plaintiffs listed in this lawsuit. Other companies that own local TV stations like TEGNA Inc. and Scripps Media are also among the lawsuit's plaintiffs.





via: https://fox59.com/indiana-news/us-appeals-court-rules-indiana-police-cannot-enforce-25-foot-buffer-law/