Others had to stay 15 feet away. The 8-1 decision authored by Chief Justice Rehnquist outlawed any restrictions except within 15 feet of the doorway or driveway. This ruling suggests that an owner of a business could be surrounded by protesters on his way to work, on his way home, attending a meeting, or out for a stroll. The same for a school teacher, a preacher, a life insurance salesman or an Air Force general or any of the rest of us who angers some constituency or even a single complainant. The latter persons, of course, are less likely to encounter demonstrators angry enough to devote their time to such harassment.
Few subjects stir the emotions as strongly as abortion.
But the ruling seems to suggest that even the protection given Jackie Onassis from the constant presence of a stalking photographer wherever she went was unlawful. California laws against panhandling, now in litigation, also would seem to be in danger. To me, the guarantee of free speech allows a person to express his feelings without fear of punishment. Comments may be humiliating or abusive, but not libelous or legally slanderous. Let him make speeches, write letters, demonstrate publicly, and target political opponents at the polls.