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Woodbury City Council bans 'targeted picketing' about:reader?url=https://www.startribune.com/woodbury-city-council-ba... <br />startribune.com <br />Woodbury City Council bans 'targeted <br />picketing' <br />KEVIN GILES <br />6-8 minutes <br />Reacting to protests outside the homes of 3M executives last year, <br />the Woodbury City Council voted Wednesday night in favor of an <br />ordinance that bans "targeted picketing" of residences. <br />The protests that inspired the ordinance involved chanting by <br />animal rights activists but didn't lead to arrests or skirmishes with <br />police, said Capt. Jay Alberio, who helped draft the proposed <br />ordinance. <br />Police had received complaints of five separate incidents with <br />seven to 15 protesters each that were affiliated with Stop <br />Huntingdon Animal Cruelty (SHAG), he said. That group objects to <br />3M's contracts with Huntingdon Life Sciences, a British firm that <br />uses animals to test products from 3M and other companies. <br />"I would point out that liberty has always been messy," said Jim <br />Grinols, of Woodbury, one of about 10 people who asked the <br />council to reject the ordinance. "A new law that would totally ban <br />peaceful protest is incorrect." <br />Police Chief Lee Vague, who defended the ordinance as a way to <br />preserve the peace when residents felt they were being targeted, <br />1 of 3 3/17/2021, 2:37 PM <br />