Daily Egyptian
USG Senator Rob Taylor is a man who stands for something.
Or at least a man who stands on the sidewalk along the Strip long enough to eat a burrito.
Taylor was arrested in early March after he refused a Carbondale Police officer's request that he keep moving along the sidewalk of the 500 block of South Illinois Avenue, where he was having a light night snack across the street from La Bamba Mexican Restaurant.
Police said Taylor was violating the city's encroachment ordinance, which states that citizens are not allowed to obstruct pedestrian or vehicular traffic in an "unreasonable manner."
The city dropped its case against Taylor June 8 because, as City Attorney Paige Reed said, the crowd along the sidewalk was not large enough to conclude that Taylor was blocking traffic.
But following the incident in March, Police Chief R.T. Finney told the Daily Egyptian the officers had to arrest Taylor because the bars were closing and pedestrians were in the area, meaning Taylor was blocking the sidewalk.
So what is it? Was he blocking traffic or not?
The city's flip-flop response to Taylor's arrest is proof the wording of the encroachment ordinance is too vague and gives police an arm for abusing this policy.
Taylor's probably also right about why the city dropped the case. They know he would fight it. While lower courts have not ruled the ordinance unconstitutional, it has never been challenged by the appellate court.
We respect the city's commitment to avoid a repeat of the violent horror show that was Halloween 2000. But we do not believe they should go so far as to arrest a man simply for enjoying a late-night snack.
The city desperately needs to reconsider a policy that does not allow small, innocent groups of people to assemble on the sidewalk.
And as for you, Rob Taylor, there have been times we have questioned your judgment and your attention-grabbing stunts.
But to this we say have your burrito and eat it too.
Published on 11/17/05; 12:24:44 PM
