The trial of a Rochester woman accused of using a racial slur towards a 5-year-old child will move forward after Judge Christa Daily denied a motion to dismiss the charges.
Shiloh Hendrix, 37, faces three counts of gross misdemeanor disorderly conduct stemming from an incident at a playground in which she allegedly called a small child the n-word. She also used the word a few times when an adult confronted her about her behavior. You can see the viral video that set the internet a storm below.
Trial Moves Forward
Hendrix is due to appear in court on July 14 for a pretrial hearing. Trial is expected to begin on July 20.
“Where the complaint alleges direct, face-to-face use of highly inflammatory language in a confrontational setting, together with circumstances indicating a foreseeable risk of immediate escalation, dismissal is improper,” Daily wrote in her decision not to dismiss the charges.
According to the judge, the language that Hendrix was recorded using may fit the definition of “fighting words,” a type of speech that is not protected by the First Amendment. Whether or not her actions rise to the level of disorderly conduct will be decided by a jury later this summer.
We talk about First Amendment protections quite frequently on this blog, but it’s also important to remind people that freedom of speech doesn’t mean you have freedom of consequences for your words. If what is alleged is true, and based on the video evidence it doesn’t seem that Hendrix is shy about her choice of words, then Hendrix clearly crossed a proverbial line of what is acceptable in society. Whether or not her actions cross the criminal line is up to a jury of her peers, but we believe that it’s going to be difficult to convince a jury that calling a small child a racial slur should be protected by the Constitution.
We’ll keep tabs on the case, and in the meantime, if you or someone you know needs assistance dealing with a criminal matter of their own, reach out to the team at Appelman Law Firm today at (952) 224-2277.
