The Grinch Wears a Badge
May 26, 2005
Someone help me out: isn't there a line of First Amendment cases holding that arresting someone for wearing a decorative mask is unconstitutional.
City and county attorneys are defending Wheeling police who arrested a man for wearing a Grinch mask while walking along a city street.
Norman Eugene Gray, 42, was arrested Tuesday. He was arraigned and released on a personal recognizance bond.
Officers saw Gray about 8:45 a.m. Tuesday, told him to take the mask off and not put it on again. Gray removed it and asked why he could not wear it, according to Wheeling police reports. Officers told him wearing masks in public is illegal.
Gray said he felt he had a right to wear it and said it was not illegal. He put the mask back on and was arrested. The mask was confiscated.