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Kent State Security Fee for Gun-Rights Event Prompts Lawsuit
By: Associated Press
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CLEVELAND (AP) – A conservative advocacy group suing Kent State University officials argues the Ohio school is impeding free speech with a $1,800 fee to provide security for a planned gun-rights discussion at the student center.
In a lawsuit this week, the group Liberty Hangout alleges it’s being treated unfairly because of its viewpoints and says the fee for eight police officers and six guards at the upcoming event amounts to censorship. It’s seeking to stop Kent State from enforcing its security fee policies.
The university won’t comment on the lawsuit but previously described its security fee assessments as “viewpoint neutral.”
The Nov. 19 event features a gun-rights advocate who helped organize a demonstration in September. Kent State spent about $65,000 on security for that event and a counter-protest, which were mostly peaceful.