Man charged for covering church directory at courthouse with text of First Amendment
A 69-year-old Ohio man is facing a misdemeanor criminal mischief case after admittedly covering a church directory at the Athens County Courthouse with the text of the First Amendment last month.
Eliot Kalman pleaded not guilty in the municipal court case, and a hearing is scheduled later this month, according to the Athens Messenger and the Columbus Dispatch.
Kalman said the outdoor display has troubled him since he first came to the county in 1976, but other First Amendment concerns have kept him busy in the meantime.
The Athens Christian Education Committee, which includes county clerk of courts Ann Trout, has maintained the directory for decades. “We added the homeless shelter. We added every denomination,” she told the Dispatch.
Lenny Elliason serves as president of the county board of commissioners. “We believe that it is for secular information for the community and do not maintain control of the information,” he explained to the newspaper in an email.
