The ACLU of Wisconsin challenged the citations with the assistance of volunteer attorneys Erik R. Guenther and James Shellows, and the ACLU's Drug Policy Litigation Project. The ACLU charged that the ordinance violated the First Amendment right to freedom of association since it was imposed on individuals whose only actions were peaceably assembling to hear electronic music.

Graham Boyd, director of the national Drug Policy Litigation Project, said the raid marked a first in the so-called war on drugs. "This is the first time that an audience was targeted," he said. "However, with the reintroduction in Congress of an anti-Rave bill that targets music promoters, we are likely to see more, not fewer, unconstitutional attempts at prosecution of innocent people."

"Electronic music concerts are a legitimate cultural event just like rock concerts, art exhibitions and film screenings, and are an important outlet for youth culture today," Boyd said. "This kind of raid is tantamount to targeting rock concerts in the 1960s or jazz clubs in the 1920s because some people were using drugs or drinking liquor."