"Local news worth reading" — The New York Times
SUBSCRIBE
The independent voice for West Orange County news
Winter Garden Police Tuesday rescinded a trespass notice issued to Kaitlin Bennett, conservative commentator and creator of the wildly popular Liberty Hangout, after officers prohibited her from conducting people-on-the-street interviews and removed her from last week’s Winter Garden Farmers Market.
Bennett maintained that because the Downtown Pavilion where the farmers market is held is public property, owned by the city, and the farmers market is a public event, she had a First Amendment right to video record her interviews there. She argued that the permit obtained by Red Top Productions to host the farmers market merely allows vendors to do business at the market.
“This is another example of why it's so important to stand up for free speech and public forums. This is what this is,” Bennet said in video of the incident, posted June 23 to her site. “It’s a traditional public forum, and I have every right to be here.”
Known for her provocative video interviews on culture war topics like gun rights, immigration and LGBTQ+ issues, Bennett began amassing a following after she posted photos of herself holding a rifle from her 2018 graduation from Ohio’s Kent State University. She has 1 million followers on her Facebook page Kate’s Unsafe Space and 908,000 subscribers to her Liberty Hangout YouTube channel.
Bennet was doing on-camera interviews for her YouTube channel at the farmers market on June 21 when a police officer approached her and asked her to leave because she didn’t have permission to video at the event. She was told she could film on the sidewalk just outside the event. Bennett pushed back saying it was a public area.
Dana Brown, president of Red Top Productions, allowed Bennett to continue. But an hour later, police and event staff came back and gave her a choice: leave or be arrested. Police escorted her off the premises and she was issued a trespass notice by the Winter Garden Police Department later that day.
Bennett’s video of the incident received more than half a million views across her social media channels. Winter Garden Farmers Market's, feed on X, formerly Twitter, which hasn’t seen activity since 2019, was inundated with negative comments posted by Bennett supporters.
“BOYCOTT THIS NAZI EVENT THAT KICKS OUT TRUMP SUPPORTER YOUTUBERS,” johnsmothers2 said. They also urged “every trump-supporting YouTuber” to “go to this market and invade it.”
Many urged Bennett to sue for infringing her rights.
“Absolutely continue through with full litigation,” a commenter wrote on Bennett’s Facebook page. “Make an example out of them. As admitted by a supervisor at the station, the chief gave the order to trespass you. A city lawyer probably had to speak to them to instruct them on what to do, which means this hit someone's desk above the chief. Sue the pants off of the department, the city, and the county. Don't forget to blast the names of every badge that you encountered in your report.”
Bennett fans even found their way to a two-year old VoxPopuli Facebook post about Winter Garden Police being directed to investigate a resident for using an expletive toward the city manager after a commission meeting.
“This city definitely doesn’t like the Constitution,” one Bennet fan commented.
“Sweet, another First Amendment violation by the WGPD,” commented another.
Winter Garden City Manager Jon Williams posted a statement on the Downtown Winter Garden Facebook page, explaining that Bennett’s trespass notice had been withdrawn.
“The Winter Garden Police Department is committed to protecting the rights of all individuals,” read the statement, in part. “The event, while hosted by a third-party private corporation, was held on public property. Following a careful review of the incident and the event’s use of unclosed public right-of-way, the department has rescinded the trespass warning. Police Department staff will be provided guidance to prevent future incidents of this nature.”
Asked in an email if the city’s reversal was influenced by the barrage of negative comments Bennett’s supporters had lobbed against the city, Williams said, “No.”
Bennett told VoxPopuli in an Instagram message that while the trespass warning was rescinded, it was troubling to see her First Amendment rights violated.
“I hope this incident serves as a wake-up call and an opportunity for police departments across the state to better brief their officers on the legal standards surrounding public forums and free expression,” Bennett wrote.
