O'BOOT
07-05-2010, 17:17
Lawsuit buds, veteran's rights bloom
The National Park Service has agreed to a disabled veteran's right to distribute poppies on the National Mall in Washington, DC.
http://i124.photobucket.com/albums/p36/MARINEJIM/BuddyPoppy.jpg
The Rutherford Institute filed a free-speech lawsuit on behalf of John Miska, who distributes "Buddy Poppies" on the National Mall to raise awareness about veterans' issues. He does not demand or request donations, but funds are accepted and used for veterans' welfare.
John Whitehead, president of The Rutherford Institute, tells OneNewsNow that park officers harassed Miska and gave him citations for panhandling after he accepted a donation while near the Vietnam Veterans Memorial. But the U.S. District Court in the District of Columbia has decided to respect the Vietnam War veteran's right to raise awareness.
"Recently the National Park Service has decided that they don't want to fight the lawsuit," reports Whitehead. "They've settled out of court, and now they're going to allow John Miska to hand out his Buddy Poppies at the Vietnam War Memorial in Washington, DC."
The Rutherford Institute president adds that his firm receives a number of complaints from veterans who cannot get proper care from the Veterans Administration, so it is good that Miska has won his constitutional right to free speech and his freedom to raise "private money for them to make sure they get proper care."
http://www.onenewsnow.com/Legal/Default.aspx?id=1074332
The National Park Service has agreed to a disabled veteran's right to distribute poppies on the National Mall in Washington, DC.
http://i124.photobucket.com/albums/p36/MARINEJIM/BuddyPoppy.jpg
The Rutherford Institute filed a free-speech lawsuit on behalf of John Miska, who distributes "Buddy Poppies" on the National Mall to raise awareness about veterans' issues. He does not demand or request donations, but funds are accepted and used for veterans' welfare.
John Whitehead, president of The Rutherford Institute, tells OneNewsNow that park officers harassed Miska and gave him citations for panhandling after he accepted a donation while near the Vietnam Veterans Memorial. But the U.S. District Court in the District of Columbia has decided to respect the Vietnam War veteran's right to raise awareness.
"Recently the National Park Service has decided that they don't want to fight the lawsuit," reports Whitehead. "They've settled out of court, and now they're going to allow John Miska to hand out his Buddy Poppies at the Vietnam War Memorial in Washington, DC."
The Rutherford Institute president adds that his firm receives a number of complaints from veterans who cannot get proper care from the Veterans Administration, so it is good that Miska has won his constitutional right to free speech and his freedom to raise "private money for them to make sure they get proper care."
http://www.onenewsnow.com/Legal/Default.aspx?id=1074332