Private security dragged out a woman who had been interrupting a Kootenai County Republican Central Committee legislative town hall Saturday as Sheriff Robert Norris stood by, video shows, spurring a disagreement between the sheriff and Coeur d'Alene's police chief over the First Amendment implications of the incident.

COEUR D’ALENE — A legislative town hall organized by the Kootenai County Republican Central Committee devolved into chaos Saturday when unidentified, plainclothes security personnel dragged a Post Falls woman from the Coeur d’Alene High School auditorium for heckling legislators.

At the heart of the First Amendment lies the right to free speech — no government entity can restrict speech, even if they find it insulting, unfavorable or disingenuous. "The government cannot step in and say,