Supreme Court Allows Evangelical Preacher’s Lawsuit Against Mississippi City to Proceed
WASHINGTON — In a unanimous decision, the U.S. Supreme Court has cleared the way for Gabriel Olivier, an evangelical Christian, to pursue a civil rights lawsuit against the city of Brandon, Mississippi, over his 2021 arrest for preaching near a suburban amphitheater.
Olivier was arrested for allegedly violating a local ordinance that restricts demonstrations to designated protest zones. Lower courts had blocked his federal lawsuit, citing his prior criminal conviction related to the incident. The Supreme Court reversed that ruling, holding that Olivier may challenge the ordinance on its merits.
Writing for the court, Justice Elena Kagan explained that the lawsuit seeks forward-looking relief — specifically, an injunction against future enforcement of the ordinance — rather than an invalidation of the existing conviction. This approach sidesteps the precedent set in Heck v. Humphrey, which generally bars civil suits that would undermine criminal convictions.
Olivier aims to return to the amphitheater to exercise his First Amendment rights without fear of prosecution. The decision was welcomed by religious liberty advocates, including Kelly Shackelford of the First Liberty Institute and Allyson Ho of Gibson Dunn, who described it as a safeguard for public expression of faith.
The city of Brandon maintains that its ordinance is content-neutral and necessary to preserve public order. While the ruling does not resolve the underlying claims, it establishes an important precedent for individuals seeking to challenge local restrictions on free speech in court.
