State v. Armen

I respectfully dissent.

I conclude that Armen was peaceably engaging in a constitutionally protected form of political expression when he refused to obey an order to leave his congressional representative’s field office, and therefore a criminal trespass conviction predicated on such refusal cannot stand.

At the time of the incident in question, Armen was a farmer in Linneus who was involved with the Maine Coalition for Peace and Justice in Central America (hereinafter “the Coalition”). For several months prior to July 7, 1986, Armen had been trying to arrange a meeting with Rep. Snowe on…