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Fan Cries 'Foul' Over Ejection From Yankee Stadium
New York Law Journal
April 16, 2009
The New York City Police Department and the New York Yankees were sued Wednesday by a man who said he was ejected from Yankee Stadium because he was walking to the restroom during the singing of "God Bless America."
The New York Civil Liberties Union filed the suit on behalf of Bradford Campeau-Laurion, 30, who claims he was tossed out of the stadium last August during a game against the Yankees' bitter rival, the Boston Red Sox.
The Yankees and other ball clubs started playing the anthem to promote patriotism in the wake of the 9/11 terror attacks, the suit says. But the Yankees are the only club to restrict spectators' movement during the song, the suit alleges.
"Yankee Stadium is a place for baseball, not NYPD-enforced patriotism," said Christopher Dunn, the NYCLU's associate legal director who is handling the case.
But the NYPD claims the man was ejected for his unruly behavior. "The officers observed a man standing on his seat, cursing, using inappropriate language and acting in a disorderly manner while reeking of alcohol and decided to eject him rather than subject others to his offensive behavior," the NYPD said in a statement.
Left out of both the lawsuit and the statement is the fact that Campeau-Laurion is indeed a Red Sox fan.
