The lawsuit, filed in April, claimed that Campeau-Laurion was, as the NYCLU put it, "the victim of religious and political discrimination on Aug. 26, 2008 when police officers forcibly restrained and ejected him from Yankee Stadium after he tried to walk past an officer during the playing of 'God Bless America.'" At the time, fans were expected to stay put during the song and submit to a recording of Kate Smith or, worse, the horrible yodeling of Ronan Tynan, because in those skittish post-9/11 days, to buy a plate of nachos during "God Bless America" was to buy a plate of nachos for Khalid Sheikh Mohammed.

No longer, however. The city, without admitting liability, has agreed to pay Campeau-Laurion a $10,001 settlement, throwing in an additional $12,000 to cover his legal fees. More importantly, in a stipulation attached to the settlement, the Yankees were allowed to lie and pretend that they never had a policy of restricting "fans wishing to move about the Stadium during the playing of 'God Bless America,'" even though they most certainly did. The team at least added that it had "no intention" of instituting any such policy.

Don't mistake the lame stipulation for anything but a thumping victory for Campeau-Laurion, civil libertarians everywhere, those of us sick of the Yankees' chest-pounding brand of patriotism, atheists, people with chronically weak bladders, and upper-concourse alcoholics trying to get one more in before last call — which is to say, just about everyone. Let us all be grateful for a land so fair.

Yankees Won't Restrict Fans for ‘God Bless America' [Bloomberg]
EARLIER: So, Yankee Stadium Takes This No Moving During "God Bless America"-Thing Rather Seriously

It's the story that shook the nation* from this past August, as Campeau-Laurion, a web producer from Queens, was ejected from Yankee Stadium because he attempted to use the restroom during the playing of "God Bless America." That's his story, anyway. New York City police say that he was ejected for being rowdy and "reeking of alcohol." After ruminating over the incident for seven months, Campeau-Laurion has decided to sue. Fortunately the New York Civil Liberties Union is here to calm the waters make sense of it all.

Christopher Dunn, associate legal director of the New York Civil Liberties Union, said it was a "troubling example of compelled patriotism" to force fans to remain in the stands for the playing of the song.

"It's patriotism being imposed on people on a mass scale," he said. "It's the first person we know of who's actually been physically thrown out of Yankee Stadium, but we certainly know of many other people who have expressed concern about the policy."

Campeau-Laurion's lawsuit contends that his constitutional rights were violated under the First, Fourth and Fourteenth amendments. He's suing the NYPD, the New York Yankees, the City of New York and the two police officers who ejected him. City lawyer Muriel Goode-Trufant said the city hadn't seen the lawsuit but planned to review it thoroughly.

So will this become a test case on the Yankees' practice of restricting movement during the playing of this song? Could it carry all the way to the Supreme Court, and eventually become a feel-good movie like Amistad?

And what better way to celebrate opening day at the new Yankee Stadium than with aggressive litigation? If anyone in attendance today has any observations on restricted movement during "God Bless America," please write in.

* = Did not actually shake nation.

Man Cries Foul Over Yankee Stadium Ejection [NBCSports]
NYCLU Sues NYPD On Behalf Of Baseball Fan Ejected From Yankees Stadium During ‘God Bless America' [NYCLU]