Utah Violating the Basic Right to Liberty
Yesterday a Weber County judge issued a gang injunction against Ogden Trece, the Ogden area gang which has been alleged to be associated with significant crime in Weber County for many years. The injunction prohibits members of the gang from congregating with each other in public, possessing firearms, drugs, and alcohol, and it even imposes a curfew of 11:00 p.m.
It is unlikely that many people have a problem with this injunction because it involves a gang which is known to be associated with crime. The ends, however, do not justify the means. What are the means? A loss of liberty. The criminal defense lawyers at Salcido Law Firm are committed to protecting individual liberty. In the Ogden gang injunction situation the Weber County district attorney and the judge who issued the injunction have essentially made a huge power grab at the expense of basic individual rights and the Utah and United State constitutions.
We have a fundamental right to assemble and affiliate with whom we please, so long as we do so in accordance with individual liberty, i.e., not hurting anyone while we do so. The member of Ogden Trece have those same rights. They have a natural right to congregate with whom they please, when they please. The law should not come into play unless and until the members of the gang actually violate another’s rights. Thus, if while congregated together they commit robbery, then the law provides a remedy for the offense of robbery. Merely congregating together is not and should not ever be a crime.
Utah Law Provides a Remedy
For every wrong there is a remedy and Utah law provides consequences for individuals who break the law. The gang injunction is unnecessary and completely unconstitutional and should be overturned on appeal. We cannot permit the state to take away our basic individual rights and usurp power which it should never have.
Salcido Law Firm Will Adamantly Protect Your Liberty
We are protectors of liberty. If a city or the state has accused you of a crime, call us for vigorous defense services. Let our Utah criminal defense lawyers fight for your rights and protect you. 801.618.1334.
