Description: Lawsuit challenging 2018 amendments to a Louisiana law that prohibits unauthorized entry of critical infrastructure by expanding the definition of critical infrastructure to include 125,000 miles of pipelines.
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White Hat v. Landry
Case Documents:
Filing Date Type File Action Taken Summary 05/22/2019 Complaint Download Complaint filed. Lawsuit Filed Challenging Louisiana Law That Targeted Pipeline Protests. Pipeline opponents, a journalist, landowners, community leaders, and environmental justice organizations filed a federal lawsuit challenging 2018 amendments to a Louisiana law that prohibits unauthorized entry of critical infrastructure. The complaint alleged that the amendments expanded the definition of critical infrastructure to include 125,000 miles of pipelines, which in many cases are not visible or clearly marked. The plaintiffs asserted that the law was unconstitutional on its face and as applied because it is unconstitutionally vague and allows for arbitrary and discriminatory enforcement, is overbroad, has a chilling effect on protected speech, and targets speech with a particular viewpoint for harsher punishment. They alleged that “the law’s vagueness, overbreadth, and unconstitutional aim are glaringly apparent in the felony arrests of pipeline opponents engaged in non-violent protest immediately after the law went into effect.”