A South Carolina town is being sued for imposing a permitting scheme and demanding other limits on the display of a religious sign.

First Liberty Institute has filed the action in federal court against the town of Chapin for its agenda to impose a permit requirement, and other limits, on Ernest Giardino.

“No one should be forced to ask the government’s permission to express their faith in a public space,” explained First Liberty lawyer Nate Kellum, in a statement about the case.

“The First Amendment is his permit. Like any citizen in any city in America, Mr. Giardino is free to peacefully share his religious beliefs on a public sidewalk. Chapin’s ordinance is overbroad, unconstitutional, and must be repealed or enjoined.”

The legal team explained Giardino “was on a public sidewalk at the intersection of Old Lexington Road and Chapin Road on June 20, 2024, holding a 20×24 inch sign attached to a short handle, which read ‘Trust Christ He paid the price’ on one side and ‘He Saved Others—Jesus—He’ll Save You’ on the other side.”

It wasn’t his first time there with a sign, the report said. He’d been there on and off for eight months without any complication.

But on that date, a Chapin police officer confronted him and told him he needed to town’s permission to share his message of faith.

The town’s code enforcement officer and chief of police both affirmed that message, and they handed him a permit application that suddenly limited his sign display to 30 minutes, including a demand he change street corners after 15 minutes.

The civil rights complaint challenges the constitutionality of the town’s agenda.

It’s because the town regulating “demonstrations” is written vaguely enough to allow officials to claim that a man holding a sign is, in fact, a demonstration.

“Chapin’s application of the ordinance to Giardino has deprived and will continue to deprive him of the exercise of his fundamental freedoms and guarantees,” the legal filing charges. It seeks nominal damages and injunctive and declaratory relief restoring his rights.

The town is accused of violating the First and 14th Amendments to the U.S. Constitution as well as the state’s Religious Freedom Act.

The case describes facts that undermine the town’s agenda to call a sign a “demonstration.”

“Giardino does not engage in any form of protest or demonstration with his signs. He does not object to anyone or anything with his signs, nor does he convey any political views with his signs. When holding one of his gospel-oriented signs in public, Giardino consciously avoids blocking pathways or disrupting traffic.”

He’s compelled to share his beliefs by his Christian faith.

“He wants to inform others of the salvation they can find by believing in Jesus Christ and accepting Him as their savior,” the filing charges. “To convey this evangelistic message, Giardino holds a 20-inch by 24-inch sign attached to a short handle containing a short, pithy statement about the gospel while standing on a public sidewalk or public right-of-way in the town limits of Chapin, South Carolina.”

His signs, over the months, have said, “Give your burdens to Jesus,” “Don’t give up! There is hope in Jesus,” “Seek ye the Lord while he may be found,” “Say it and mean it…God be merciful to me a sinner…,” “Christ Jesus came to save sinners,” “Sin – Face it now or face Him later,” and “Death is Not the End, Ye Must Be Born Again.”

He spontaneously picks street corners.

“Through signs, Giardino can convey his message without causing anyone to stop or speak with him. Individuals in vehicles can read the statements on his sign as they drive by him. Giardino typically holds a sign in a public space for over one hour and in the late afternoon during rush hour and/or after schools have let students out, to maximize the number of people who can view the messaging on his sign,” the filing charges. “He does not use amplification or project his message orally to share his religious beliefs. He remains silent when he holds a sign, only speaking with individuals who approach him for conversation.”

The city, however, set up a permit procedure that allows the mayor to reject any request at his own discretion.

Giardino initially complied with the demands, and obtained a permit, but found police shutting down his speech anyway, as he did not carry a copy of the permit with him while he held a sign.

The filing reveals Giardino tried to obtain relief from the town without legal action, but was told by one official the town believes its local requirement “supersedes the Constitution because it’s a local ordinance.”

Town officials promised a “statement” on the dispute, which had not arrived by publication