Canterbury Settles Free-Speech Case

Hartford - The American Civil Liberties Union of Connecticut today announced a successful resolution in the case of Jeanette Kildea, a public school teacher who was banned from speaking during the public comment period at Canterbury Board of Selectmen meetings for criticizing the policies of a Canterbury Selectmen. According to the settlement agreement, the town of Canterbury will pay Kildea $60,000.

“Jeanette Kildea has been attending public meetings in Canterbury for many years because she believes that citizen participation is the lifeblood of democracy at the local level,” said Andrew Schneider, Executive Director of the ACLU of Connecticut. “This settlement makes it clear that the First Amendment protects this great tradition of American democracy.”

At the December 5, 2006 Canterbury Board of Selectmen meeting, First Selectman Neil Dupont Sr. ordered that Kildea alone could not speak during the public participation portion of the meeting, stating "I don't need to be lectured. I don't need to be talked down to. I don't need to have someone's different opinion of every move I make."

The ACLU-CT sent a letter to the town charging Dupont’s actions violated Kildea’s constitutional right to free speech. Rather than ceasing its unconstitutional behavior, the board responded by banning speech by any member of the public at all board meetings unless and until the ACLU-CT stopped insisting on free speech rights for Kildea and others. The town failed to respond to a second letter from the ACLU-CT demanding that the public comment period be reinstated, and the ACLU-CT filed suit against the town of Canterbury in Connecticut Superior Court in June 2007. The suit was later removed to federal court.

“Our constitutional rights retain their vitality because people like Jeanette Kildea are willing to make personal sacrifices to preserve our freedom of speech,” said David Cohen of Wofsey, Rosen, Kweskin & Kuriansky, LLP, the ACLU-CT cooperating attorney who represented Kildea.

Kildea will donate her share of the proceeds to the Town of Canterbury to support the process of open government. She says, “I envision the library as the perfect vehicle for raising awareness about the historical and continued importance of open government.” Kildea is optimistic that the donation will move the Town of Canterbury in a positive direction.