Leave Me Alone, Man Tells New Orleans

NEW ORLEANS (CN) - An apparent Saints fan claims New Orleans police arrested him unconstitutionally, 18 times, for sitting by Interstate 10 holding a sign saying, "By God's Grace We Live! Go Saint All the Way."

Hennie Wooten's attorney does not specifically state in his federal complaint whether the "Saint" referred to in the sign is actually the football team, or a saint. But he claims that "while exercising his constitutionally guaranteed right to freedom of speech, plaintiff has been falsely arrested eighteen (18) times, since August 2006. Six of the arrests came in the first 5 months of 2010, and on the last one, Wooten says, the arresting officer battered him. He wants $100,000 for pain and suffering, and punitive damages. He is represented by Edwin Shorty Jr. with Shorty, Dooley & Hall.

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