A South Carolina town has agreed not to enforce an ordinance that required residents to obtain a permit to hold religious signs in public as part of a legal settlement with a Christian man who contends such a rule violated his constitutional rights.

The U.S. District Court for the District of South Carolina has entered a consent order enjoining the Town of Chapin from enforcing its prohibition that prevented Ernest Giardino from holding religious signs on public roadways without a permit, according to an announcement from the legal organization representing Giardino. The town must also pay nominal damages and attorney's fees. 

"Mr. Giardino just wants to share his Christian faith with others," First Liberty Institute Senior Counsel Nate Kellum said in the announcement. "We commend the Town for revising the ordinance language so Mr. Giardino can live out his faith in the public sphere."

The dispute began in June 2024 when Giardino was holding a 20-by-24-inch sign at a busy intersection in Chapin. The sign read "Trust Christ He paid the price" on one side and "He Saved Others — Jesus — He'll Save You" on the other.

As he was leaving the sidewalk, a Chapin police officer informed Giardino that he would need permission from the town to display the message. Giardino had held similar signs for months without issue, but was told this time that the town required a two-week advance notice and would limit him to holding the sign for only 30 minutes, with a rule to change sidewalk corners every 15 minutes.

The following day, he met with the town's code enforcement officer and police chief, who confirmed the permit requirement and gave him an application.

Giardino, represented by First Liberty Institute, filed a federal lawsuit in July 2025 arguing that Chapin's ordinance imposed an unconstitutional prior restraint on his First Amendment rights. The legal complaint stated that the ordinance's burdensome requirements deterred him from continuing to engage in peaceful religious expression on public sidewalks.

In its letter to town officials before filing the lawsuit, First Liberty described the ordinance as a "permit scheme" that chills protected speech. The letter cited legal precedent against granting town officials broad discretion over who may speak and when, describing such rules as "the most serious and least tolerable infringement on First Amendment rights."

In September 2025, the U.S. District Court for the District of South Carolina issued a preliminary injunction blocking Chapin from enforcing the ordinance. The court ruled that Giardino could continue holding signs on public sidewalks while the case was pending.

The following month, both parties agreed to a consent order, permanently enjoining the town from enforcing the prior version of the ordinance. The town revised the language of the ordinance, and the court entered the final order last Wednesday.

Associate Counsel Garrett Bell stated that Giardino had since resumed standing weekly with his sign, following the earlier injunction, and that the court's ruling affirmed a constitutional violation.

The Town of Chapin issued a statement on Tuesday, stating that it settled with Giardino. Under the terms of the agreement, the town will pay him a symbolic $1 in damages and cover his legal fees totaling $35,000, according to The State.

The town said its ordinance "did not concern itself with what was on a sign — religious, political, sports or any other topic; and the text of a sign was not required in the application process." Officials stated that the rule was intended to manage safety and public use on often-narrow rights-of-way, rather than regulating the content of demonstrations.

Chapin said Giardino had never been denied a permit, nor had he been fined. In fact, the town said he had applied for and received more than 20 permits in the past without any reference to the message on his signs. Still, the ordinance required 14 days' notice for any demonstration, including those involving only a single person, and imposed location and time limits on activity.