Prosecutors drop trespassing charges against gay couple arrested on Temple Square
Prosecutors have dropped trespassing charges against the two gay men who were arrested in the Main Street Plaza of Temple Square. (See the previous post on the incident here.) The men were initially approached by security and asked to refrain from PDA, but were arrested when they argued and refused to leave. Prosecutor Sim Gill cited the fact that the men did not know the Plaza was private property as part of his reasoning for declining prosecution.
I don’t have much to add on the topic; it seems like a reasonable decision to me, and I don’t think the Mormon Church was really interested in pursuing the charges either. However, Gill’s comments about the men not knowing the Plaza was private property are somewhat misleading. At least one of the two men, Matt Aune, reported protesting the termination of the public easement in 2003.
