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Baltimore regulations violate abortion protester’s First Amendment rights, lawsuit says

A Maryland man has sued the city of Baltimore claiming violations of his rights to free speech and the free exercise of religion.

John Roswell of Elkridge says the city’s efforts to block him from placing signs on a public sidewalk while he protests near the Planned Parenthood clinic in Baltimore are unconstitutional, partly because permitting regulations require the abortion facility to consent to the display.

The Thomas More Society, a public-interest law firm representing Mr. Roswell, said he has stood on a public right-of-way to communicate with women contemplating abortions as they approach or leave the facility.