FOCUS: Orange County Focus is dedicated on Monday to analysis of community news, a look at what’s ahead and the voices of local people. : PERSPECTIVE : Outspoken Gadflies Keep Council Meetings Abuzz : Should Comments Be Controlled? Cities Weigh the Options

Norman Rockwell paid tribute to grass-roots democracy in his 1943 painting “Freedom of Speech,” which depicts a man rising to address his town council with a folded speech in his pocket and a glint of determination in his eyes.

If an artist in Orange County set out to capture the scene today, the results would be quite different. The painting might portray a cross-dressing man angrily waving a plunger at his elected representatives or a woman serenading council members with patriotic hymns.

Both incidents were cited by city officials as examples of how the serious business of government sometimes takes an unexpected turn with the colorful testimony of residents.

While such outbursts are rare, they have attracted increased attention in the past year, when some speakers have crossed the line between meaningful discourse and belligerent behavior.

The Fullerton City Council on Tuesday will consider adopting a “courtesy” resolution asking residents to refrain from personal attacks and insults when speaking at meetings. The proposal comes a month after an activist made statements about Mayor Julie Sa that she and others considered offensive.

“It’s important that we maintain basic courtesy and civility toward one another,” Fullerton Councilwoman Jan M. Flory said. “I’m leery of drafting a policy that circumscribes public comments. . . . But I think we need to make a statement about behavior we can’t tolerate.”

Huntington Beach already prints a message on its council agendas welcoming public input but warning: “Negative comments directed at individuals are not acceptable.”

Legal experts contend that cities have little power to regulate the style or tone of public comments. State laws give residents the right to speak at public meetings but not to disrupt them. That leaves it up to the mayors who chair council meetings to decide when someone goes too far.

Most council members offer wide latitude to speakers and rarely return the barbs tossed their way. One well-publicized exception was two years ago in Huntington Beach, when a councilman lashed out at two persistent critics, calling one “the village idiot” and the other a “fool.”

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But even officials who maintain their silence in the face of unfair criticism say it’s sometimes difficult to turn the other cheek.

“It can get very frustrating,” said Laguna Beach Police Chief Neil J. Purcell Jr. “Our city has a very tolerant policy about having people express themselves. I respect that. But it does become irritating when people get into personal attacks that are clearly inappropriate.”

Over the years, speakers have commented on the weight and hairstyles of council members, not to mention accusing them of various misdeeds, Purcell said.

One of the more bizarre incidents was at a Laguna Beach council meeting last spring when a man pulled out a colorful toy water gun and began brandishing it in the direction of a gadfly seated nearby.

The gadfly, who recently filed a claim against the city over the episode, is a familiar face to officials. In the past, he has used the speaker’s podium to criticize the Police Department and accuse Purcell and a former mayor of stealing drugs from him.

Perhaps the most famous of the unconventional activists is Will B. King, who attended a number of city and county meetings this year decked out in a bright peach dress, fishnet stockings and white pumps.

King’s antics, which have included pulling two oranges out of his brassiere during an animated speech, have resulted in his eviction from several meeting halls. His presence became such a nuisance in Costa Mesa that the city began stationing a police officer at every council meeting in case of trouble.

But King isn’t the only one to attract public attention.

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A few years ago in Newport Beach, a resident frustrated with some city action threatened to put a hex on the City Council. Ex-mayor Clarence J. Turner said he is still not sure what prompted her action. “All I know is that I’m cursed,” he joked.

In 1992, women’s rights activists expressed their anger over a sexual harassment scandal at the Police Department by presenting Newport Beach council members with toy pigs.

Officials were besieged by another type of animal when equestrians pushing for riding trial at a Upper Newport Bay park trotted their horses up and down the City Hall lawn. “I don’t think their tactics helped them,” Turner said. “Coming down and trampling on public property is no way to get my vote.”

Irvine’s council chamber has also been the scene for some memorable public testimony, much of it from a tireless activist who recites her mantra at almost every council meeting: “Reduce the size and scope of government.”

In 1993, to celebrate the election of Richard Riordan as mayor of Los Angeles, the woman serenaded the council with “Yankee Doodle.”

A year earlier, she tried to generate interest in the Libertarian Party by arriving at council meetings with a large sign bearing the party’s 800 number. She sat in the front of the council chambers so that television cameras broadcasting the meetings would be certain to pick up the sign.

For the most part, elected officials say, they take such spirited activism in stride.

“It goes with the territory,” said Phil Sansone, a former Newport Beach councilman. “It’s their 1st Amendment right.”

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Off the Agenda

Some cities are seeing an increase in colorful testimony by residents at council meetings. Here are a few examples cited by officials:

* The Song: An activist celebrated the election of Richard Riordan as mayor of Los Angeles by singing “Yankee Doodle” before the Irvine City Council.

* The Costumes: A Seal Beach transient, a fixture at council meetings, often dressed for the occasion, arriving once in a cowboy outfit and during the holidays as Santa Claus.

* The Curse: A Newport Beach activist troubled by some city action threatened to put a hex on the council.

* The Horses: Equestrians pushing for construction of riding trials at an Upper Newport Bay park trotted their horses up and down the lawn in front of City Hall.

* The Citrus: Gadfly Will B. King spoke at a Board of Supervisors meeting clad in a peach skirt and white fishnet stockings. At one point during his speech, King pulled two oranges from his brassiere.

Sources: Times reports, city officials; Researched by SHELBY GRAD / For The Times

Los Angeles Times