CINCINNATI — The U.S. 6th Circuit Court of Appeals heard oral arguments Wednesday in a case involving the arrest of then-Trumbull County Commissioner Niki Frenchko during a 2022 public meeting.

The case centers on whether Frenchko’s arrest was a violation of her First Amendment rights or a lawful response to disruptive behavior.

Frenchko, a Republican, was arrested during a July 7, 2022, board meeting after criticizing then-Sheriff Paul Monroe’s handling of inmate care at the county jail.

The lawsuit alleges her arrest was politically motivated and lacked probable cause, while the defendants argue it was a lawful response to her disruptive conduct.

The hearing before a three-judge panel focused on whether Frenchko’s arrest was retaliatory and whether the defendants, including fellow commissioners Frank Fuda and Mauro Cantalamessa, conspired to silence her criticism. Like Frenchko, Fuda and Cantalamessa are no longer in office.

Attorney Dan Downey, representing Fuda and Cantalamessa, as well as Monroe, argued that Frenchko’s arrest was justified due to her disruptive behavior during the meeting.

“We would submit to the court that the trial court erred when they determined that there was no probable cause for the arrest of Miss Frenchko,” Downey said.

He cited video evidence showing Frenchko interrupting the reading of a letter multiple times, including saying, “No, no, that’s not true,” and allegedly intimidating the clerk.

Judge John B. Nalbandian questioned whether Frenchko’s arrest was consistent with past practices, noting that no one had been arrested for similar behavior at previous meetings.

“Nobody’s ever been arrested for disrupting a meeting. Is that right?” Nalbandian said.

Downey acknowledged that no prior arrests had been made but argued that Frenchko’s conduct was “outrageous and beyond what we had seen prior.”

Attorney Andrew Yosowitz, representing sergeants Brian Wicks and Michael Ross, who carried out the arrest, echoed Downey’s arguments. He emphasized that the officers acted based on their observations of Frenchko’s behavior, not her speech.

“There’s no evidence in the record that they arrested Miss Frenchko because they were upset on the content of her speech, rather than a genuinely held belief that she violated the statute,” Yosowitz said.

Matt Miller-Novak, representing Frenchko, argued that her arrest was retaliatory and lacked probable cause. He pointed to the chaotic nature of Trumbull County meetings, where interruptions and disruptions were common.

“Every previous meeting before, and actually every subsequent meeting after, if interruptions and overtalking one another and boorish behavior and arguments and shouting matches are considered disruptive behavior, you’d have to park a paddy wagon outside of it every single meeting,” Miller-Novak said.

Miller-Novak also raised concerns about deleted text messages and suggested they could have revealed coordination among the defendants

“They destroyed that evidence, your Honor,” Miller-Novak said.

He cited testimony that Monroe texted a news station about Frenchko’s arrest within 20 minutes of it occurring. The judges pressed both sides on whether Frenchko’s arrest was motivated by her speech or her conduct.

Judge Stephanie Dawkins Davis questioned whether the case should be remanded to address the “Nieves exception,” which allows for First Amendment claims even if probable cause exists, provided the arrest was retaliatory.

Judge Eric L. Clay noted that Frenchko’s behavior appeared to disrupt the meeting significantly.

“Here we have one person who, single-handedly, brings the entire meeting to a halt and will not cease her disruptive behavior,” Clay said.

In a statement, Frenchko maintained that her arrest was politically motivated.

“Judge Calabrese’s ruling was correct when he indicated that you can’t separate conduct from speech. It was a retaliatory arrest for having a different point of view,” Frenchko said. “Every meeting was disruptive, but I’m the only person in the history of Trumbull County to ever be arrested for interrupting.”