Activist sues Aurora over City Council’s decision to end public comment at meetings over recurring protests

An activist and frequent protester at Aurora City Council meetings has filed a federal lawsuit against the city claiming her First Amendment rights are being violated by a contemporary decision to end general comment at its twice-monthly business meetings MiDian Shofner who uses the last name Holmes in her suit filed the complaint this week in U S District Court in Denver It says the council ended general comment in a June vote to restrict one viewpoint the viewpoint criticizing the Aurora Police Department s killing of Kilyn Lewis and Aurora s inadequate response to it Such actions sought to keep those holding that viewpoint from being able to speak to and petition their administration for redress of their grievances says the suit filed by the Denver law firm Newman McNulty Lewis was shot and killed by an Aurora SWAT officer on May at an apartment complex in the city He was unarmed Police had been seeking Lewis on suspicion of attempted murder in Denver The lawsuit suggests the decision to end society comment was meant to target those seeking justice for Lewis because the resolution explicitly stated that the ban would be lifted once the lawsuit pertaining to the APD s killing of Mr Lewis is concluded Lewis family last month sued Aurora on a wrongful death claim The federal lawsuit filed this week also faulted Aurora Mayor Mike Coffman s decision to post to Facebook a photo showing Shofner and other protesters addressing the council alongside an explanation of the council s decision Shofner heads a group called Epitome of Black Excellence and Partnership In that post the mayor wrote that protesters who have attended council meetings over the last year have ignored rules of conduct and taken every opportunity they could to hijack our agenda items during our regular meetings Their goal is simple write them a check and they will go away Coffman wrote Until then they will continue to disrupt our meetings They have no choice but to continue disrupting our meetings because their lawsuit is meritless Related Articles Aurora s City Council decides to meet virtually with no general comment until shooting lawsuit is resolved Family of Kilyn Lewis sues Aurora SWAT officer for wrongful death in police shooting Aurora again tightens society comment rules at City Council meetings as protests of police conduct continue Jeff Roberts the executive director of the Colorado Freedom of Information Coalition says the contends in the lawsuit are intriguing On the one hand he declared there is nothing in state law that requires local governments to provide a residents comment opportunity And Aurora isn t just shutting down residents input for one group but for everyone City councils Roberts announced are allowed to manage citizens participation in proceedings to maintain decorum and order On the other hand he reported plaintiffs may be able to successfully argue that Aurora s ban on inhabitants comment resulted from animus toward a particular viewpoint which could have First Amendment implications Is the judge going to look at it as being more about the viewpoint of the group or how they ve been acting when they go to the mic he commented Get more Colorado news by signing up for our daily Your Morning Dozen email newsletter