A newly proposed bill in Tennessee would make it even more difficult to protest in the state -- by making obstructing a highway a felony and giving immunity to drivers who unintentionally injure or kill those in the way. It is already illegal to obstruct a "highway, street, sidewalk, railway, waterway, elevator, aisle, or hallway," but doing so results in a Class A misdemeanor.The newly proposed bill would make that a Class E felony, punished with up to six years in prison. At the same time, the bill would give anyone operating a vehicle who "unintentionally causes injury or death to another person" blocking a pathway complete immunity from prosecution for the injury or death.
