Six Flags Discovery Kingdom park, formerly known as Marine World, features a variety of exploited wild animals, including dolphins, rare penguins and Bengal tigers.
BOB EGELKO: ‘Animal rights protesters at Six Flags Discovery Kingdom in Vallejo must be allowed to use bullhorns to amplify their voices over the noise of the crowd without seeking police permission, a federal appeals court ruled… The park, formerly known as Marine World, features rides and a variety of animals, including dolphins, rare penguins and Bengal tigers…
“In a crowded park or bustling intersection, where a single voice is easily drowned out, volume enables speech,” said the Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco. The 2-1 ruling said a Vallejo ordinance requiring police permits for sound amplifiers anywhere in the city is a restraint on speech that cannot be legally enforced, except where officials can show the sound would disrupt public peace and quiet or cause traffic hazards.
It was the second legal victory this year for activists protesting alleged abuse of animals at the 138-acre park. In June, a state appeals court prohibited Six Flags’ owners from banning protests in the parking lots and walkways outside the park, saying the area, while privately owned, is a “public forum for expressive activity” under California law. That ruling became final in September when the state Supreme Court denied review of the owners’ appeal.
The federal and state lawsuits were both filed by Joseph Cuviello of San Mateo, who says he has been protesting outside the park since the early 1990s. Cuviello started using a bullhorn after the park barred protests on its property in 2014, but stopped after a police officer told him in October 2015 that he would confiscate the bullhorn “as evidence of a crime” if Cuviello continued to use it without a permit, the court said’. SOURCE…
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