VICTORY: Houston METRO Backs Down, Rescinds Unlawful Trespass Notice Against Preacher

The ACLJ is pleased to announce a decisive First Amendment victory on behalf of our client, Texas preacher Howard Camp. After months of unconstitutional harassment culminating in an unlawful criminal trespass notice, Houston’s Metropolitan Transit Authority of Harris County (METRO) has been forced to rescind its ban and formally clarify its policies regarding religious speech and amplification at its outdoor transit facilities. This hard-fought win represents not only a personal vindication for Mr. Camp but also a critical reaffirmation of free speech and religious liberty protections in public spaces throughout Houston and beyond.

What Happened

As we previously reported, Mr. Camp has faithfully and peacefully ministered for nearly two years at an open-air Houston METRO bus terminal. His activities have always been straightforward, non-threatening, and constitutionally protected: preaching the Gospel, distributing religious literature, praying with those who request it, and offering food and water to individuals waiting for public transportation. He was serving his community while exercising his God-given and Constitution-protected rights.

Yet during one visit, METRO officers wrongly detained Mr. Camp, placed him in handcuffs, and threatened him with arrest– treating him like a criminal for doing what Americans have done in public squares since our nation’s founding. Officers falsely claimed the outdoor terminal was “private property” and demanded he obtain a “permit” to exercise his First Amendment rights. When Mr. Camp rightfully questioned this unconstitutional demand, METRO escalated by issuing a formal trespass warning, effectively banning him from returning to the public facility.

Shockingly, no specific law was cited. No actual rule was identified as having been violated. No disruption had occurred. Mr. Camp faced the ongoing threat of arrest and criminal prosecution merely for peacefully sharing his Christian faith in what is unquestionably a public space. This is precisely the kind of government overreach and viewpoint discrimination that the First Amendment was designed to prevent – and exactly when the ACLJ steps in to fight back.

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The ACLJ Steps In

Recognizing the severity of these constitutional violations, on December 3, we sent a comprehensive and detailed legal demand letter to METRO’s leadership. Our letter methodically outlined the multiple ways METRO had violated Mr. Camp’s constitutional rights and demanded immediate corrective action: removal of the unlawful trespass notice and clarification of METRO’s speech-related policies.

Our legal analysis left no room for ambiguity. We made clear that:

• The outdoor terminal is an open public space operated by a governmental entity – not private property where speech can be arbitrarily restricted.
• Peaceful religious speech receives the highest level of First Amendment protection and cannot be suppressed simply because government officials find the message uncomfortable or disagreeable.
• METRO cannot manufacture unwritten permit schemes or selectively enforce vague, undefined rules to silence disfavored viewpoints.
• Any legitimate time, place, and manner restrictions must be content-neutral, narrowly tailored to serve significant government interests, and must leave open ample alternative channels for communication – none of which applied here.

We also made clear that, absent immediate corrective action, the ACLJ stood prepared to file litigation in federal court to vindicate Mr. Camp’s constitutional rights and hold METRO accountable for its unlawful conduct.

The Result: Vindication and Policy Clarification

Houston METRO chose the only legally defensible course of action. In a written response to our legal demand, METRO confirmed that the trespass warning issued against Mr. Camp has been fully rescinded. He is now free to return to the terminal – and any other METRO facility – and continue exercising his constitutional rights without fear of detention, harassment, or arrest. As METRO’s own letter acknowledged, Mr. Camp is now “free to return to any METRO terminal and exercise his First Amendment rights.”

Equally important, METRO also provided formal written clarification of its policy regarding the use of amplification at outdoor METRO facilities. METRO explicitly acknowledged that its Code of Conduct does not prohibit speech, preaching, or religious expression at outdoor terminals. This written clarification serves as a binding policy statement that prevents METRO from enforcing phantom rules, unwritten restrictions, or selectively applied standards to silence speech that officials personally oppose.

This means government officials were compelled to acknowledge in writing the constitutional limits on their authority – and they did. That matters tremendously for Mr. Camp and for every other citizen who seeks to exercise their First Amendment rights in Houston’s public spaces.

The ACLJ will continue our unwavering defense of religious liberty and free speech in public spaces across this nation, and we stand ready to take immediate legal action whenever government actors unlawfully attempt to censor or suppress constitutionally protected expression. This fight is far from over, but today we celebrate an important victory for freedom.

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