Attorneys from the Alliance Defense Fund last week filed a suit on behalf of a anti-abortion group, Defend Life, against the City of Westminster contending that the city violated the group's First and Fourteenth Amendment rights.

The disagreement is over a planned demonstration on July 30, 2008, by Defend Life as part of its "Face the Truth" tour to spread an anti-abortion message.

Defend Life is a non-profit, pro-life organization based in Baltimore. The group is seeking to get the city to change the wording of its ordinance regarding demonstrations, and also any damages prescribed by the court.

According to a copy of the lawsuit, filed Thursday, Oct. 23 in the District Court of Maryland, Elizabeth Walsh of Owings Mills, director of Defend Life's tour, said the Westminster Police Department told the organization they would have to have permits from the city, State Highway Administration and permission of a shopping center located near the intersection of Route 140 and Englar Road in order to stage a demonstration.

However, the lawsuit contends that the SHA does not require such a permit, and the city did not grant the group a permit.

Defend Life says the requirements "chilled" the group's free speech and equal protection rights.

"Pro-life advocates shouldn't be penalized for expressing their beliefs," said Alliance Defense Fund Senior Legal Council Joel Oster in a press release issued by the fund. "The government can't require them to obtain permits to exercise their First Amendment rights."

The Alliance Defense Fund is a legal alliance of Christian attorneys and other organizations, according to its Web site.

Mayor Tom Ferguson said this week he was aware of the lawsuit, but both he and city attorney John Walsh said the city had not been served papers as of Monday and they could not comment on the suit.

The "Face the Truth" tour involves volunteers displaying signs, some depicting photos of aborted fetuses. The suit states that the tour has appeared in more then 100 towns and cities over the past eight years.

In the lawsuit, Defend Life challenges the wording of the city's ordinances on demonstrations and permits needed to demonstrate on public property.

Chapter 109 of Westminster's City Code states that a "picketer" must obtain a permit from the mayor. The lawsuit states that the ordinance does not define what "picketing" is.

The suit says Westminster "construes 'picketing' to mean public demonstrations or protests,' and that the city ordinance is vague on several aspects.

The lawsuit states that because the city did not grant the group a permit, the plantiffs "were forced to abandon their plan to demonstrate on the corner of Highway 140 and Englar Road," and instead demonstrated outside of city limits "at a much less preferable location" -- the intersection of Route 140 and Sullivan Road facing westbound, according to the lawsuit.

Katie V. Jones contributed to this story.

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