Surprise City Council OKs repeal that restricts public complaints against city employees at meetings

SURPRISE, Ariz. - Free speech got a win Tuesday night in Surprise after the city council voted to repeal a rule restricting public complaints against city employees during council meetings.

This comes after Rebekah Massie, an advocate for civil governance reform, criticized an $11,000 raise for the city attorney last month.

Massie was arrested after Surprise Mayor Skip Hall told her to stop speaking at the August meeting.

Hall: "This is your warning."

Massie: "A warning for what?"

Hall: "A warning for attacking the city attorney personally."

Massie: "This is all factual information."

Hall: "It doesn't matter."

Massie: "You're violating my first amendment rights."

Hall: "This is what you agree to when you are speaking, this is the form."

Massie: "It is unconstitutional, Mayor Hall."

Speaker arrested

"I'm … no … I'm expressing … do not touch me. Do not put your hands on me. Do not put your hands on me," she said during the meeting as she was being taken into custody.

Surprise Police took Massie into custody, accusing her of trespassing.

The previous city rules required the public to fill out an online form an hour before meetings, but members of the public were still restricted from "lodging charges or complaints against city employees or the council."

After her arrest, Massie teamed up with the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression (FIRE). The free speech group has filed a federal lawsuit against the city claiming the mayor and city council violated the 32-year-old mother's constitutional rights.

FOX 10 reached out to Massie for an interview, but she turned down the interview request. Massie did confirm she's still facing the trespassing charge.

The city of Surprise said in a statement, "At their September 17, 2024 Regular City Council Meeting, the Surprise City Council voted to repeal a public comment rule that has been part of its speaker decorum rules for over 20 years. Other cities in Arizona follow similar speaker decorum rules or variations thereof at their meetings. As this area of the law is constantly evolving, and in light of recent events, the City has decided to repeal this rule and review its speaker rules to ensure they set forth appropriate time, manner, and place guidelines that protect both the public’s right to speak and the City’s right, and expectation of citizens in attendance, to conduct its meetings efficiently, effectively, and with appropriate decorum and civility."