‘At no time did officers prevent any individuals from expressing their views,’ spokesman says
A Texas police department says one of its officers who went viral for threatening a street evangelism group with a citation for offensive speech made claims that were “not accurate.”
The city of Fort Worth and the Fort Worth Police Department launched a review of the incident captured on video at the Trinity Pride Fest in downtown Fort Worth on June 27. The now-viral video showed an unidentified female police officer threatening to arrest two members of a street preaching team during the public event.
According to the video, police blocked Rich Penkoski and David Grisham from accessing the sidewalk upon their arrival at the event.
As the street preaching group continued to question police about the warning while they were moved to an area outside police barricades, an unidentified female officer is heard saying, “If someone is offended by your talking, then we have a problem. … If they are offended by your speech, OK, I will write you a ticket, and we’ll go from there.”
Grisham was ultimately issued a citation for “unreasonable noise,” but no further explanation was provided. The city of Fort Worth website states that its “unreasonable noise” ordinance is “intended to apply to, but is not limited to” noise linked to animals or construction work.
After the incident went viral, Fort Worth Police spokesman Officer Buddy Calzada told The Christian Post the department was reviewing the video.
Calazada provided an update Wednesday in which he said city and police officials “carefully reviewed the incident” at the pride event and said it began when someone — presumably a member of Grisham and Penkoski’s group — “was using a bullhorn to amplify their voice.”
After receiving noise complaints from business owners, FWPD officers told the person using the bullhorn that they would be cited for “making an unreasonable noise” in violation of the city ordinance if they continued using the bullhorn.
When the person using the bullhorn ignored the officer’s warning, a citation was issued, and the bullhorn was “seized as evidence.”
Calazada denied reports that the unidentified officer seen on camera interfered with the First Amendment rights of the street preaching team.
“At no time did officers prevent any individuals from expressing their views,” he said in a statement shared with CP. “Officers told the individuals they could continue exercising their rights without using an amplification device. However, the individuals willingly ceased protesting after the bullhorn was seized as part of the enforcement action.”
According to Calazada, while the video circulating online “captures only a portion of the interactions between the officer and the individuals involved,” FWPD also “acknowledges that an officer involved in the incident made certain statements that were not accurate.”
Calazada did not provide any further details.
In response, the FWPD will provide “refresher training” to police and new trainees on “First Amendment protections and related legal issues for persons expressing free speech, protesters, and other similar activities,” Calazada said.
The FWPD has a long track record of handing out citations for Christian preachers in public spaces: in 2024, a resident who was cited for a noise ordinance violation during a street evangelism outreach at the Fort Worth Stockyards was acquitted by a jury after challenging the citation in court.
