False Police Report|Objectors Lack Standing

(CN) - A group of Minnesota residents lack standing to challenge a state law that criminalizes the knowledgeable filing of a false report of police misconduct, the 8th Circuit ruled.

Communities United Against Police Brutality filed the suit, along with a lawyer, two journalists, and three others who claimed to be victims of police misconduct.

The plaintiffs claimed in Federal Court that their free speech and due process rights were violated by fear of prosecution under the statute.

Judge Beam of the St. Louis-based federal appeals court summarized their case as follows: "Basically, these plaintiffs allege that Minnesota police are corrupt and will fabricate charges of knowingly making false reports of police misconduct in retaliation for making any complaints about police."

The district court was not impressed with the lawsuit, calling it "speculative" and a "house of cards that cannot withstand scrutiny."

Beam agreed with dismissal of the case for lack of standing: "Plaintiffs do not face a credible threat of prosecution - the 'risk' they face is too speculative."

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