By Amy Gilroy
The Florida Supreme Court made it legal to crank up your car stereo in the Sunshine State, vindicating a Florida lawyer who was cited for blasting a Justin Timberlake song back in 2007.
Clearly, they ticketed the wrong guy.
On Wednesday, the court ruled unanimously, on the basis of free speech, to overturn the state’s law banning loud noise audible 25 feet away from a car. The seven justices called the old statute “invalid because it is an unreasonable restriction on the freedom of expression,” reported Naplesnews.com.
Justice Jorge Labarga noted the old law exempted businesses and political messages from the noise ban, but not general motorists, which was deemed a violation of the First Amendment.
Labarga was also skeptical of the state’s claim that the old noise ordinance made traffic safer.
The case was first filed by Richard Catalano, a lawyer who got a $73 ticket while driving to work.
Amy Gilroy is the Editor of CEoutlook and a Contributing Author to Satellite Radio Playground and Market Playground. Amy has been a fan of car audio longer than she cares to admit. At age 17, she was told an amplifier could make the car radio sound better, and from then on, she was hooked. Prior to launching CEoutlook, she was a Senior Editor at TWICE magazine.
Contact Amy Giroy: agilroy@ceoutlook.com
