SEATTLE (AP) — A federal judge says it was reasonable for King County officials to refuse to place advertisements critical of the Israeli government on Metro buses.
U.S. District Court Judge Richard Jones on Friday refused to grant a preliminary injunction sought by the Seattle Mideast Awareness Campaign that would have ordered the county to run the ads reading, “Israeli War Crimes: Your Tax Dollars at Work.”
Jones wrote that threats of violence and disruption led bus drivers and law enforcement officials to express safety concerns and county officials had “a reasonable basis” to refuse the ads.
The American Civil Liberties Union of Washington argued the county’s refusal violates the group’s First Amendment rights.
