Orange County Sheriff Candidate Bill Moore Urges Immediate Policy Reform in the City of Winter Garden Following First Amendment Violations
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
ORLANDO, ORANGE COUNTY, FL
June 28, 2025
Candidate for Orange County Sheriff, Bill Moore, issued a strong statement today demanding immediate corrective action by the City of Winter Garden following a serious constitutional rights violation involving a local podcaster who was unlawfully trespassed from the Winter Garden Farmers Market.
“The First Amendment is not optional,” said Moore, a retired police detective and advocate for constitutional policing. “Winter Garden must immediately revise its city policies, event permit language, and staff training procedures to comply with the U.S. Constitution.”
The call for reform follows a statement from City Manager Jon C. Williams, who acknowledged that the Farmers Market operates on public property and that a trespass warning issued to a social media journalist was improperly applied. Despite this acknowledgment and the rescinding of the trespass warning, the official Farmers Market website continues to list “Political Solicitation” and “Religious Solicitation” as prohibited activities, both of which are clearly protected speech in a public forum.
Moore emphasized that for more than 17 years, the City has allowed unconstitutional restrictions at its signature public event, misleading both the public and permit holders about their rights. “The City’s failure to update its website and event policies even after admitting wrongdoing is unacceptable,” Moore said. “It sends the wrong message to citizens, police officers, and event organizers.”
Moore is calling for the following immediate actions by the City of Winter Garden:
- Revise all permit applications and website language to clearly reflect constitutionally protected activities.
- Remove all unconstitutional restrictions, such as blanket bans on political or religious speech.
- Provide mandatory training to all city staff and police officers regarding First Amendment rights in public forums.
- Notify all permit holders, including Farmers Market vendors and event managers, that they cannot request individuals be trespassed solely for engaging in protected speech.
- Establish a written policy that upholds constitutional rights at all public events on city-owned property.
“This is a matter of law, not preference,” Moore said. “As your next Sheriff, I will ensure deputies understand and defend the rights of all individuals, regardless of the message they carry. Winter Garden, and all of Orange County, must be held to the same standard.”
For more information or to support the campaign, visit www.mooreforsheriff.com.
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