City commissioners repealed a law Thursday that critics said gave police too much power during protests, three months after a global trade summit prompted officials to revisit the rules governing demonstrations.
Commissioners voted 4-0 to repeal the rally ordinance, which civil libertarians said chilled free speech and unfairly targeted a specific group because of its anti-free trade message.
"This was a necessary thing to do so we can go back to normal in the city of Miami," Commissioner Tomas Regalado, who made the push to repeal his own ordinance, told The Miami Herald. "It's dangerous to give police all the power to decide what people can take to rallies."
The ordinance prohibited protesters from carrying props including water pistols, balloons, bottles and sticks and requires a permit for public gatherings of seven or more people if they last more than 30 minutes.
Police arrested 146 people during FTAA demonstrations, including up to 28 felony arrests. All the arrests were made under laws and ordinances existing before the FTAA security planning.
Organized labor and civil liberty groups roundly criticized police conduct during the meeting.
One result of the ordinance was a federal judge's order early this month that the City of Miami automatically grant all protester permits, or come to court to explain why.
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