Minnesota city sued after police cited preacher for holding pro-life sign without vendor license

BENSON, Minn., July 28. The City of Benson, Minnesota, faces a federal civil rights lawsuit after police issued criminal trespass citations to Bryan Conwell, an open-air Christian preacher who refused to pay a $20 vendor fee to stand in a public parking lot holding a sign opposing abortion. The Center for American Liberty filed the suit Tuesday on Conwell's behalf, alleging city officials placed an unconstitutional price on protected speech.

Preacher cited twice, each charge carrying up to 90 days

Officers cited Conwell for criminal trespass on July 9, then again on July 16 when he returned to the same lot. Each citation carries a maximum penalty of 90 days in jail and a $1,000 fine. The confrontations arose during a farmers' market event, at which city officials and police told Conwell to leave or pay the $20 vendor fee, asserting "exclusive use" of the public property.

The lawsuit states Conwell blocks no one, threatens no one, and sells nothing. He holds signs and speaks only to those who approach him. Video provided to Fox News Digital by the Center for American Liberty shows him holding a sign reading "Abolish Abortion to the Glory of God" while questioning officers about the legal basis for the citations.

One officer told Conwell: "The more you come back, the more citations you're going to get." The officer who wrote the ticket acknowledged uncertainty about the policy in a conversation referenced in court filings. "To be honest, man, I want clarification too," he told Conwell, adding that he recognized the tension between trespass law and First Amendment protections.

Lawsuit alleges speech fees, viewpoint discrimination, religious freedom violations

The Center for American Liberty's complaint alleges violations of freedom of speech, free exercise of religion, viewpoint discrimination, and unconstitutional conditions on speech. Mark Trammell, the organization's chief executive, said in a statement that government cannot require Americans to purchase a license before peacefully expressing beliefs on public property. Fox News Digital contacted the City of Benson for comment and received no response.

Congressional Republicans push Supreme Court on parallel case

Conwell's lawsuit arrives as GOP lawmakers have pressed the U.S. Supreme Court to take up a similar dispute. Earlier this month, congressional Republicans urged the court to hear the case of Richard Hershey, a Christian evangelist threatened with arrest in 2020 for distributing pamphlets on a public sidewalk in Louisiana.

Conwell's two criminal trespass citations, each carrying a potential $1,000 fine, remain pending.