From Boston.com:
On a whim two years ago, performance artist Jonathan Doyle paraded around the bustling peak of New Hampshire’s Mount Monadnock in a $40 Bigfoot costume from iParty.
He thought his deadpan video interviews with hikers describing their Bigfoot sightings would be worth a few chuckles on YouTube, and might boost the profile of his other artwork.
Bigfoot, courtesy of Jonathan Doyle (click to enlarge)
But the staff at Monadnock State Park found the Yeti act abominable. When Doyle returned with friends to shoot a sequel, the park manager quashed the production and ordered Doyle off the mountain, insisting he needed a state permit to film a movie in the park.Bigfoot stepped up with a lawsuit, alleging that the park’s permit regulations are unconstitutional.
The New Hampshire Supreme Court next month will hear Doyle’s complaint. Though many elements of the dispute border on the absurd, the case raises some serious free speech issues.
“What this suit is about for us is preserving the right of the little guy to express himself artistically,’’ said Barbara Keshen, a lawyer with the New Hampshire Civil Liberties Foundation [sic], which is representing Doyle. …
The problem, from Doyle’s perspective, is that permits cost $100, there is a 30-day waiting period, and anyone who wants a permit must post a $2 million insurance bond to protect against injuries and damage, adding several hundred dollars to the cost, according to filings.
That’s too much cash and red tape for a few friends out on a lark with a consumer video camera, Doyle argues. …
The state Supreme Court is set to hear arguments in Doyle’s case on Nov. 10.
Hat tip to Granite Geek.
