Joshua Gibbons has made public a 2023 First Amendment suit alleging Kingsport police raided his home after he filmed and criticized a speeding officer. In June, Tennessee's appeals court overturned his disorderly-conduct conviction and dismissed the charge.
At his first trial, a judge acquitted Gibbons of speeding and phone-use charges but convicted him of disorderly conduct; a county jury found him guilty of that charge in a second trial. The appeals court said there was no evidence his criticism prevented lawful activity, and noted that he made no threats, used no violence and created no hazardous condition.
The suit, brought by the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression against the city of Kingsport, its police chief and officers, says police obtained a warrant within two hours of learning of the video. It cited speeding, phone use while driving and disorderly conduct; FIRE says it was obtained from a court clerk, not a judge. Eight armed officers raided Gibbons' home before dawn the next day, nine days after he filmed the officer. Kingsport police did not respond to Fox's request for comment before publication.
