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Loading ...No charges in Mormon church plaza kissing incident
07.29.2009 2:40pm EDT
(Salt Lake City) The Salt Lake City prosecutor’s office says it will not pursue charges against two men who were cited for trespassing on a Mormon church-owned downtown plaza earlier this month after sharing a kiss.
Prosecutor Sim Gill says in a statement there is reason to believe that although the property is private, Matt Aune and his partner, Derek Jones, did not think they could legally be ejected from the plaza because it is perceived to be open to the public.Aune and Jones have said they were targeted because they are gay. The July 9 incident has prompted two mass kissing demonstrations at the plaza.
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has disputed Aune’s and Jones’ version of the events, saying their behavior was lewd and more was involved than a “simple kiss of the cheek.”
For azorman:
The debate over whether this is private property or not is not that simple:
The mormons ‘purchased’ this public square from the city government without the appropriate rules followed.
Reason? Because this once-public square was the scene of Anti-Mormon debates throughout the decades. The Mormons got sick of having to watch these debates, so they put pressure on the government to buy it – to silence protests in the future.
The citizens of Salt Lake City DO NOT recognize the Mormon church as owners of this property – but USURPERS.
So now that you understand the real history of your ‘Private Property’ argument, maybe you’ll change your view.
The only real reason why the DA dropped the charges in this case was because the Mormon church would LOSE.
And that would set a nasty precident for the Homophobes who paid for the proposition 8 and Prop 1 in Maine campaigns.
to the mormons: Don’t get your magic panties in a bunch.
Well what i think needs to be remembered here is that it is private property and the owners of said property can eject whoever they like for whatever reason. If they thought it was lewd for a man and a woman to hug, that is their right. its a PRIVATE property, they are doing a public service by allowing everyone to view such a well kept area. But we should not just force them to accept things they find offensive and against their religion on their own property. If this were a public place, it would not be a big deal, but its their property, their rules, simple as that.
If two people straight or gay kissed in our church parking lot, noone would notice, give it a thought or would care.
Glad I am not a Mormon. Getting upset over a natural thing like a kiss is strange to me.
Ginelle said “It is basically a no brainer”
You should remember that we are talking about the Mor(m)ons and not regular people here.
Obviously, someone has the good sense not to pursue this issue and waste the taxpayers dollars in the process! Regardless whether it is two men or women kissing or a man and woman kissing, this issue should have never been filed with the Salt Lake City Prosecutor’s Office. It is basically a no brainer, if you want to charge to men for kissing, or two women, then why not charge a man and woman for the same so called “offence”. It is only fair, right?