More than two dozen Republicans in the Minnesota House of Representatives have signed onto a bill that would make it a crime for people to protest outside of someone’s home.
There was a spate of such incidents across the Twin Cities in 2020 and 2021 following the George Floyd riots in Minneapolis and St. Paul. In those incidents, left-wing activists targeted protests at the homes of police officers, a county prosecutor and legislators.
This week, one state lawmaker told Alpha News he was recently the target of an individual who publicly encouraged others to protest outside his home. That was the impetus for Rep. Walter Hudson, R-Albertville, to draft the legislation which he introduced last week.
HF2809 would criminalize the act of protesting “before or about the residence or dwelling of any person, except when the residence or dwelling is used as a place of business.”
Language in the bill states that a person who violates the section of law would be guilty of a misdemeanor. But it leaves room to charge individuals with a gross misdemeanor if they violate the statute a second time or have previously been ordered to cease contact with the resident they’re targeting.
Qualifying language in the bill states that the section “does not prohibit the peaceful protesting of the place of holding a meeting or assembly on premises commonly used to discuss subjects of general public interest.”
Hudson said he has contacted police to help resolve the repeated harassment and threats made against him, the doxxing of his wife, and the calls to “hold a town hall” at his home. While he believes political protests have a proper time, place and manner, he doesn’t think those who target individuals at their home is protected by the First Amendment.
“There are all sorts of legitimate ways to contact an elected official or stage a legitimate protest to express criticism or make your point known,” Hudson said. “The only reason to go to somebody’s house to deliver that message is to intimidate them or their family.”
Protests outside homes of police, elected officials, prosecutors in 2020 and 2021
Hudson’s bill is expected to receive a hearing in the House Public Safety Committee in the coming days. It doesn’t yet have a companion in the Senate, but Hudson believes it will find authors there. One of those may be Sen. Warren Limmer, R-Maple Grove, who in July 2020 was the target of an organized protest by left-wing activists.
In that incident, which is still documented on social media, self-described police brutality activists protested outside Limmer’s home.
Several of the activists rang the doorbell at the front step of Limmer’s residence and loudly shouted for him to come outside and address them. They claimed to be targeting his home because Limmer was the chair of the Senate Public Safety Committee. Two of those activists opened the storm door of the home and began taunting Limmer, although it appeared no one was home at the time.
Later that summer a related group of activists staged a protest outside the home of then-Minneapolis police union president Bob Kroll and his wife Liz Collin (who is an employee of Alpha News). During that incident, activists shouted obscenities and taunted neighbors, including children who were outside their homes.
Municipalities can, and do, regulate protests in residential areas
Following that highly-publicized incident, the city of Hugo and nearby Lino Lakes passed ordinances prohibiting protests in residential neighborhoods.
While the protest outside Kroll’s and Collin’s home in 2020 was the most high-profile example of such activity and its impact on neighbors, other cities across the metro have been responding to such protests dating back to the 2000s.
In 2009, the city of Woodbury created an ordinance banning residential-area protests in response to about one dozen animal rights activists who staged repeated protests outside the homes of 3M executives.
While Hudson says that the municipalities that have passed such ordinances have been able to prove they are not violating the First Amendment by prohibiting residential protests, he believes some local governments still shy away from taking the step due to the threat of potential litigation.
Still, the League of Minnesota Cities, which offers guidance to municipalities across the state, has a guide for when and how local units of government can regulate protests.
“Cities have a strong interest in prohibiting protests, picketing, and demonstrations focused on a person’s home,” an informational memo from the organization states. “Cities can act to protect the well-being, tranquility, and privacy of an individual’s home. City ordinances can likely limit picketing or demonstrating in front of a residence.”
No Democrats have signed onto Hudson’s bill, but he says he’s hopeful it will garner their support.
“I’ve have had conversations with (DFL) representatives about the broader issues of doxxing, swatting and harassment of public officials, and there is bipartisan sentiment expressed that these types activities are not appropriate.”
Hank Long
Hank Long is a journalism and communications professional whose writing career includes coverage of the Minnesota legislature, city and county governments and the commercial real estate industry. Hank received his undergraduate degree at the University of Minnesota, where he studied journalism, and his law degree at the University of St. Thomas. The Minnesota native lives in the Twin Cities with his wife and four children. His dream is to be around when the Vikings win the Super Bowl.
