Vanessa Enoch v. Hamilton County Sheriff's Office, et al.

At all relevant times, Petitioner Vanessa Enoch was working as a member of the media and collecting information for a study regarding the removal of African American female jurists from the bench in Ohio. In performing those functions, Petitioner was gathering information regarding the criminal prosecution of a local female African American jurist. She was doing this by using her iPad to record related public events in the hallway outside of the courtroom after proceedings had recessed. While she was attempting to record these events of public import, Deputies with the Hamilton County, Ohio, Sheriff, following the Sheriff’s custom, practice and training, confiscated Petitioner’s iPad and arrested her precisely because she was recording such events in the courthouse hallways. It is undisputed that Petitioner was, at the time, in full compliance with the time, place and manner restrictions imposed by the local courts and otherwise in full compliance with Ohio law when the confiscation and arrest occurred. The questions presented are: (1) Whether the Sheriff’s unilateral custom, practice and policy of banning all news gathering recording activities in the public hallways of a courthouse, where the local judges’ time place and manner rules have allowed such activities, violates Petitioner Enoch’s rights guaranteed by the First Amendment to the United States Constitution by delegating to the Sheriff unbridled discretion in deciding when and who may engage in such First Amendment activities.