NEWTON, Iowa — A Newton resident has filed a federal lawsuit against the City of Newton for allegedly violating his First Amendment rights.
In August 2022, Noah Petersen heard the story of a 19-year-old Newton man who was arrested for a DUI, despite a breathalyzer test showing a Blood Alcohol Concentration of 0.00.
The incident outraged Petersen, leading him to advocate for police reform in his city. At first, Petersen began writing to the city council, as the council generally accepted written statements. However, the city allegedly did not accept Petersen's statement and refused to read it at the next meeting.
"Something has to be said and they wouldn't respond to my emails, so I figured, well, let's just show up in person so they can't, at least they have to hear me then," Petersen told Local 5.
Petersen attended a city council meeting on Oct. 3, 2022 to share his concerns. But when he attempted to speak during the public comment period, Petersen claims Mayor Michael Hansen banged his gavel and ordered police to remove him from the room. Petersen was then arrested and charged with disorderly conduct, according to court documents.
"So, after the first arrest, I said, 'Well, I'm going to go back again'," Petersen said. "I mean, I'm not going to let them stop me from speaking just because they don't like my words."
Petersen attended a second city council meeting and attempted once again to read his statement, only to be arrested and charged with disorderly conduct for a second time.
Petersen was found not guilty in the first case this past February. Meanwhile, the City of Newton dismissed the second case.
Now, Petersen is continuing to seek accountability, with the help of the national public interest law firm Institute for Justice (IJ).
Together, Petersen and IJ are suing the city, the mayor and the police chief for "the deprivation of [Petersen's] rights under the First, Fourth, and Fourteenth Amendments to the United States Constitution", according to the lawsuit.
"The mayor just arrested him twice directly for just speaking, and the mayor didn't like what he had to say," said IJ Attorney Brian Morris. "So, this is a pretty clean case to push, in our minds, to push kind of the law forward on these First Amendment retaliation cases, so that Americans have broader protections from their local governments retaliating against them."
Both Petersen and Morris say this is an issue happening all across the country.
"What really matters to me is that the precedent is set, that this can't happen to anybody else and that everyone's rights are upheld," Petersen said.
The lawsuit was filed Thursday, Oct. 12. However, according to Morris, he believes the city will be served Monday.
The Newton City Council told Local 5 that is has no comment regarding the federal lawsuit at this time.