ST. LOUIS -- A woman is suing St. Louis over the removal of her Black Lives Matter mural.
Katherine Bernhardt filed a federal complaint on July 16 in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri against the City of St. Louis for violation of the U.S. Constitution and her right of integrity under the Visual Rights Act of 1990.
According to her complaint, Bernhardt is a renowned contemporary artist, whose eclectic style has achieved international recognition and commercial success. On June 21, 2020, Bernhardt painted a mural onto detachable panels, outside of her building.
Bernhardt painted the mural to show support for the ongoing Black Lives Matter protests occurring in the wake of the death of George Floyd. On July 17, 2020, employees and/or agents of the City of St. Louis, entered Bernhardt’s private property and destroyed the mural by covering it up with white paint, the suit says. Bernhardt alleges this is a violation of her rights.
Bernhardt seeks a declaration against the City of St. Louis for the destruction of her mural, actual damages for the tortious destruction of and injury to her property, compensatory and nominal damages, attorney's fees and cost of suit. Bernhardt is represented by Lisa S. Hoppenjans of Washington University in St. Louis School of Law.
U.S. District Court Eastern District of Missouri Eastern Division case number 4:21-cv-00870-RWS D