Pro-life activist Zack Knotts was detained and charged with disorderly conduct by the Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio police department on December 28 while he was protesting outside of an abortion facility. According to the citation he received from the police, Knotts “did knowingly generate noise by means of a megaphone causing [inconvenience] and alarm to passersby at the Women’s Clinic.”
The arrest was caught on video and was shared on social media. “There’s hope in the Gospel of Jesus Christ for all of you,” Knotts is heard saying. “… I love you enough to tell you the truth. Jesus Christ came to Earth to save sinners like you.”
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In the video, police officers said they had received complaints about Knotts causing “inconvenience, annoyance, or alarm” to others. Knotts asked the officers why they hadn’t arrested the clinic worker who told him to commit suicide. He also told police he would sue them.
In an email to Live Action, Knotts explained, “On December 28, 2024, I was unlawfully detained and charged with disorderly conduct by the Cuyahoga Falls (OH) Police Department for peacefully preaching the Gospel outside an abortion clinic on a public sidewalk. The charge was based on the claim that my preaching ‘annoyed’ passerby’s [sic], which is an entirely subjective basis for restricting free speech. This action was taken despite my clear constitutional right to free speech and religious expression, and we firmly believe it violates my First and Fourth Amendment rights.”
Knotts was arrested under the Cuyahoga Falls disorderly conduct ordinance 509.03 (a) (6), which states, “Generating or, being the owner or person in possession or control of a vehicle or premises by reason of employment, agency, or otherwise, permitting to be generated unreasonable noise or loud sound which is likely to cause inconvenience or annoyance to persons of ordinary sensibilities by means of a radio, phonograph, television, tape player, loudspeaker or any other sound amplifying device or by any horn, drum, piano or other musical or percussion instrument.”
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The First Amendment protects freedom of speech in public, including on sidewalks as long as that speech is not considered “fighting words,” meaning it does not include or incite violence or criminal behavior.
“The city ordinance I was charged under has no objective standard and allows for enforcement based purely on personal annoyance, which the Supreme Court has consistently ruled as unconstitutional,” said Knotts. “For example, in Coates v. City of Cincinnati (1971), the Court struck down a law punishing ‘annoying conduct’ for being too vague. Similarly, in Saia v. New York (1948), the Court invalidated a law requiring permission for sound amplification because it gave too much discretion to authorities.”
Knotts is due to appear in court on January 2.
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