MONTGOMERY COUNTY, Md. — Some signs atop a busy Maryland roadway are grabbing the attention of drivers and neighbors alike.
Recently, conservative activist Shaun Porter, and several other people, have been holding signs atop the Capital Beltway, in Montgomery County, on the Bradley Boulevard overpass.
While holding politically tinged signs near roadways is not a new phenomenon in the D.C. region, Porter’s signs have been found by critics on both sides of the political spectrum.
They include curse words and sexually graphic language directed at President Joseph Biden and the Democratic party.
Jobe Lett, an 11-year-old Montgomery County resident who lives nearby the overpass, said the signs have become a distraction in his neighborhood.
“Because of the language that they’re using,” he said.
Data provided by the state of Maryland shows that more than 200,000 people drive the Beltway, around the Bradley Boulevard overpass, every day.
But some of those drivers honk at Porter’s signs. That has also become a problem for neighbors. Homes surround the overpass on both sides.
“Hey, I support everyone’s right to [free speech],” Montgomery County Jesse Sanders said. “I just kind of wish it wasn’t in the most residential of areas.”
Porter said he started holding the signs on the overpass because he believes the country is going in the wrong direction. However, he admits he’s also trying to grab drivers’ attention with the language that is posted on them.
“There’s a lot of colorful language and terms and stuff to convey our sentiment, but also to make it funny,” he said. “It’s something you don’t see every day, so people will share it on Facebook [and] social media.”
Maryland State Police told WUSA9 that obscenity laws are vague and currently they have questions about infringing on Porter’s First Amendment rights by asking him to stop.
University of Maryland Francis King Carey School of Law Regents Professor Mark Graber said Porter and his friends are currently protected by the law.
“There is nothing illegal as of now, in part, because there is no law that bars it,” he said.
But Graber said that could always change.
“I'm fairly confident they could pass a law that says no signs over the overpass,” he said. “Overpasses are not what's known as public forum where the public traditionally has a right to speak. Beyond that, they can make a very good argument that signs distract [drivers].”
As for defining what is obscene, Graber agrees it can be a hard task.
“In large part, because what was obscenity many years ago, now shows up on late-night TV, on cable with great regularity,” he said. “So, obscenity laws now serve the purpose of politicians get to say ‘we’re doing something’ and nothing gets done. And vague laws serve that purpose well.”