Olivier’s case returns to the lower courts after the Supreme Court ruled Friday that his civil challenge should not be barred just because he previously was convicted under the Brandon ordinance, according to the Associated Press. In the unanimous decision, the justices focused on what Olivier was asking the court to do next: stop officials from enforcing the ordinance going forward.
The dispute centers on Olivier’s public religious demonstrations in Mississippi and the city’s position that his activities had to be limited to a specific area. The Supreme Court said Olivier sought that limited, forward-looking remedy—a court order aimed at future enforcement—rather than an effort to undo his past conviction.
In its description of the underlying events, the city said Olivier shouted insults at people over a loudspeaker. The city also said he sometimes held signs showing aborted fetuses, and the city argued that the restrictions were not about religion.
Olivier’s lawyers, by contrast, said he was demonstrating peacefully and that his arrest came after he refused to move his preaching away from the suburban amphitheater to a designated “protest zone.” They said the legal principle in the case matters for free-speech disputes across the political spectrum.
Justice Elena Kagan, writing for the court, said the suit could continue because Olivier asked for only a forward-looking remedy: “an injunction stopping officials from enforcing the city ordinance in the future.” She added that the suit could proceed “notwithstanding his prior conviction,” the Associated Press reported.
The court ruling does not guarantee an eventual win on the merits. The Associated Press reported that local governments have said a decision for Olivier could have broader effects, potentially prompting more lawsuits challenging similar speech and religious-expression restrictions after criminal convictions.
Conservative rights advocates hailed the Supreme Court’s decision as a step toward access to courts for people claiming their First Amendment rights were violated. Kelly Shackelford, president and CEO of the conservative nonprofit First Liberty Institute, said the outcome was “not only a win for the right to share your faith in public, but also a win for every American’s right to have their day in court when their First Amendment rights are violated.” Attorney Allyson Ho of Gibson Dunn said the ruling reflects that, as people of faith, they “look to the judiciary to protect our constitutional right to spread the gospel,” the Associated Press reported.
The Associated Press also reported that Brandon’s attorneys said the ordinance already has survived another lawsuit and that Olivier had other legal avenues to challenge the law. The Supreme Court’s decision, however, clears a path for Olivier to file a civil-rights lawsuit aimed at preventing future enforcement.