Christian Leader Fined for Liberty Bell Demonstration

For Christians who have participated in peaceful protests or who have distributed information in public places, the phrase “Liberty Bell” might seem ironic today. After a two-day bench trial in U.S. District Court, an evangelical Christian leader was fined $420 and required to obtain a permit from the National Park Service to demonstrate in the vicinity of any national monuments, punishment for an incident at the Liberty Bell.

The Associated Press reported that Repent America director Michael A. Marcavage, 28, was cited and charged for disturbing the peace after he and others used a public sidewalk to espouse their religious view and to express their opposition to abortion in October. The sidewalk exists on a street that borders the Independence National Park, and the National Park Service restricted demonstrations there after the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001.

Park rangers reportedly approached Marcavage and offered him a plot of space that was a mile away, but he refused. That refusal led to the citation.

U.S. Magistrate Judge Arnold Rapoport ruled that Marcarvage was guilty of violating a verbal permit and interfering with park rangers. Marcavage’s attorney, C. Scott Shields, said they plan to appeal.

“Welcome to the new America,” Marcavage said to reporters outside the courtroom. “God help us. We're all headed for trouble if this is the direction the country is going in.”

Other religious group leaders and pastors have made news this year with arrests, notably one in Connecticut opposing the War in Iraq.