Mass. Gen. Laws » Part I Title VII Chapter 39
Massachusetts General Laws

Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 39, § 17 (2026)

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Section 17. No person shall address a town meeting without leave of the moderator, and all persons shall, at the request of the moderator, be silent. If a person, after warning from the moderator, persists in disorderly behavior, the moderator may order him to withdraw from the meeting, and, if he does not withdraw, may order a constable or any other person to remove him and confine him in some convenient place until the meeting is adjourned.

Notes of Decisions
Cited in 1 case, 1988–1988 · leading case: Stefan v. Laurenitis, 695 F. Supp. 1330 (D. Mass. 1988).
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Stefan v. Laurenitis, 695 F. Supp. 1330 (D. Mass. 1988). “Nevertheless, however close to, or minimally supportive of, a first amendment violation, Mass.Gen. Laws ch. 39, § 17 reads: No person shall address a town meeting without leave of the moderator, and all persons shall, at the request of the moderator, be silent.”
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