Police cite Ohioan for DUI checkpoint warning sign

CLEVELAND (AP) — A suburban Cleveland man says police violated his First Amendment rights of free speech when they cited him for holding a sign warning motorists to turn if they wanted to avoid a police DUI checkpoint.

Douglas Odolecki, 43, held a sign Friday night in Parma that said: “Check point ahead! Turn now!”

He and his attorney are fighting the citation. Odolecki says police sometimes abuse their authority and he believes he’s fighting for a just cause.

A Parma police spokesman says city attorneys previously determined the part of the sign telling motorists to turn is illegal.

It’s not the first time Odolecki used the sign or got into trouble for it. Parma police arrested him in September 2012 for having a knife in his pocket while holding that sign.