Holding Court is a series by retired Rye City Court Judge Joe Latwin. Latwin retired from the court in December 2022 after thirteen years of service to the City.
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By Joe Latwin
The U.S. Supreme Court recently declined to hear an appeal on a case involving blowing a car horn. Susan Porter attended a protest at a Congressman’s office. While leaving the protest, she honked her car horn in support of the protesters in three bursts, totaling 14 honks. A County sheriff’s deputy pulled Porter over and cited her for violating the law that says a driver may use a horn when reasonably necessary to insure safe operation and not otherwise. At trial, the deputy failed to appear and the case was dismissed.
Porter then filed a civil suit. Porter argued therein that the threat of a similar fine stopped her from honking in support of other public demonstrations. In the civil case, Porter argued that application of the honking law violated her First Amendment and 14th Amendment rights to express not only her political views, but her ability to honk to “greet friends” or “celebrate weddings or victories”. The lower federal district court ruled against Porter and Porter appealed to the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals.
The Ninth Circuit rejected Porter’s argument that horn law targeted political speech, and concluded the law was narrowly drawn to advance a substantial governmental interest. Porter asked the Supreme Court to hear the case. It declined to take the case.
New York has a similar law on horn honking. Vehicle and Traffic Law 375 (1)(a) says “Every motor vehicle, operated or driven upon the public highways of the state, shall be provided with . . . a suitable and adequate horn or other device for signaling, which horn or device shall produce a sound sufficiently loud to serve as a danger warning but shall not be used other than as a reasonable warning nor be unnecessarily loud or harsh.” In 1985 federal court upheld a fine against a motorist who honked repeatedly in a Manhattan traffic jam as a protest against road conditions.
Once again, a little forethought goes along way. If you blow your horn, who are you annoying? Is there a sleeping baby or an elderly person napping within earshot? What does a horn honk mean? What idea does it convey? Is it support or trying to drown out others speech? Is there a better, more effective way to express yourself? Is it worth a $50 fine and a $55 surcharge and the inconvenience of getting a ticket? So, if you love cookies, don’t honk. Show your love of Jesus by doing good deeds instead of honking.
So no horn honking unless you are warning someone of a danger or a goose!
