{"id":1296,"date":"2023-01-10T15:50:55","date_gmt":"2023-01-10T20:50:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.acluvt.org\/news\/case\/cappello-v-city-newport\/"},"modified":"2023-01-10T15:50:55","modified_gmt":"2023-01-10T20:50:55","slug":"cappello-v-city-newport","status":"publish","type":"case","link":"https:\/\/www.acluvt.org\/cases\/cappello-v-city-newport\/","title":{"rendered":"Cappello v. City of Newport"},"author":0,"featured_media":0,"menu_order":0,"template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_relevanssi_hide_post":"","_relevanssi_hide_content":"","_relevanssi_pin_for_all":"","_relevanssi_pin_keywords":"","_relevanssi_unpin_keywords":"","_relevanssi_related_keywords":"","_relevanssi_related_include_ids":"","_relevanssi_related_exclude_ids":"","_relevanssi_related_no_append":"","_relevanssi_related_not_related":"","_relevanssi_related_posts":"","_relevanssi_noindex_reason":""},"case_status":[26],"court":[],"class_list":["post-1296","case","type-case","status-publish","hentry","case_status-filed"],"acf":{"case_number":"","featured_image":null,"date_updated":"20230110","date_filed":null,"call_to_action":null,"attorney":"","judge":"","pro_bono_firm":"","partner_organizations":"","summary":"City of Newport officials served Mr. Cappello a \u201cnotice against trespass\u201d barring him from city property without due process.\n","components":[{"acf_fc_layout":"text","text":{"text":"The ACLU filed a lawsuit on behalf of Andrew Cappello, who City of Newport officials served with a \u201cnotice against trespass\u201d in August 2021, barring Mr. Cappello from city property. The \u201cno trespass\u201d order was issued at the request of the City\u2019s Public Works Director with an apparent grudge against Mr. Cappello, a former Newport employee.\n\nOn August 5, 2021, Mr. Cappello was visiting friends at the Prouty Beach Campground in Newport when the City\u2019s Public Works Director approached, falsely accused Mr. Cappello of harassing city employees, and demanded that he leave. Soon after, a Newport police officer arrived and presented Mr. Cappello with a notice against trespass which ordered him \u201cnot to enter upon property that is lawfully possessed by: City of Newport.\u201d The notice had no explanation for why it was issued or instructions on how to contest it. \n\nWhen Mr. Cappello sought further explanation, the Newport Police Chief would say only that the Public Works Director had instructed him to issue the notice. Mr. Cappello inquired again, noting that he needed to access public property\u2014Gardner Park and Prouty Beach, specifically\u2014to volunteer for his children\u2019s sports teams and for his new job with NorthWoods Stewardship Center. He was told the notice would expire after one year but received no additional information. And, when Mr. Cappello requested an opportunity to petition the city council to lift the notice, the mayor refused.  \n\nAs a result, Mr. Cappello did not enter City property for months, was unable to visit friends at Prouty Beach Campground, and could not perform some of his job duties. Although Mr. Cappello has visited the parks occasionally since the notice\u2019s expiration in August 2022, he still fears future reprisal. \n\nPublic spaces, by definition, should be accessible to all. And yet, in recent years we have seen local officials abusing their authority to bar Vermonters from public places. In some cases, these appear to be retaliatory measures motivated by personal grievances. When officials misuse their power to restrict access to public life, it undermines the values of civic participation and inclusion on which our democracy relies. In this case, Mr. Cappello\u2019s rights were violated, and he deserves to be compensated for blatantly unjust and unlawful treatment.\n\nMr. Cappello\u2019s case is part of a troubling pattern of local officials excluding Vermonters from public places and civil forums. Last week, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.acluvt.org\/en\/cases\/state-vermont-v-stephen-whitaker-amicus-brief\">the ACLU filed an amicus brief<\/a> in the case of Montpelier resident Stephen Whitaker, who was forcibly removed from a city council meeting in June 2022 and criminally charged for trespassing. In 2019, the ACLU <a href=\"https:\/\/www.acluvt.org\/en\/press-releases\/aclu-reaches-settlement-agreement-burlington-lawsuit-over-no-trespass-ordinance\">settled a lawsuit filed on behalf of Jason Ploof<\/a> challenging a no-trespass order prohibiting him from entering City Hall Park in Burlington; that case settled after the city agreed to policy changes consistent with constitutional requirements. And in 2014, <a href=\"https:\/\/vtdigger.org\/2014\/10\/02\/court-rules-favor-parent-banned-school-board-meetings\/\">a federal court ruled in favor<\/a> of ACLU client Marcel Cyr, a Rutland resident banned from attending school board meetings in violation of his free speech and due process rights. \n\nRecognizing that cases like Mr. Cappello\u2019s are a widespread problem in Vermont, the ACLU has urged the Vermont League of Cities and Towns to issue statewide guidance to its members. To date, the League has declined to do so. \n\nLike many Vermont towns, Newport has no criteria or procedures for issuing or challenging trespass notices for public property. It is past time for the League of Cities and Towns to issue statewide guidance on this recurring problem and help establish clearer procedures to protect Vermonters\u2019 rights. Failing that, the legislature should act to protect the fundamental right of Vermont residents to access public spaces.\u201d\n\nMr. Cappello\u2019s lawsuit was filed in Vermont Superior Court, Orleans Unit. In his complaint, Mr. Cappello asserts that his free speech and due process rights were violated when he was denied access to all City property without an opportunity to challenge the notice. Mr. Cappello further alleges that such targeted and arbitrary mistreatment violated both the Common Benefits Clause of the Vermont Constitution and the Equal Protection Clause of the United States Constitution. He is seeking declaratory and injunctive relief as well as damages."}}],"legal_documents":[{"court":null,"documents":[{"document_options":"document","document":1297,"title":"2023-01-10 Cappello v. City of Newport complaint.pdf","subtitle":"","date_filed":null,"drupal_node_id":"","slug":"","child_documents":null}]}],"plaintiffs":null,"co-counsel":null,"issues":[1366,1369],"related_content_publications":[],"press_releases_related_to_cases":[],"related_news":[],"related_content_cases":[]},"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v24.9 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Cappello v. 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