 Washington (CNN) -- The Supreme Court was the scene of an unusual disturbance during its public session on Wednesday, when a man interrupted an oral argument. The incident occurred near the end of debate between the nine justices on the bench and counsel, in a case over attorney fees in patent disputes. The man interrupted proceedings in the patent case by shouting slogans like "Money is not speech," "Corporations are not people" and "Overturn Citizens United." The man, identified as Noah Newkirk of Los Angeles, California, was protesting the Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission ruling which cleared the way for increased independent corporate and union spending during federal elections. Newkirk has been charged with violating federal law that makes it a crime to "harangue" or utter "loud threatening or abusive language in the Supreme Court Building." Outbursts in the Supreme Court are rare.
– For the first time in eight years, the staidness of the Supreme Court was shaken up by an outburst from a protester yesterday. During a debate on attorney fees in patent lawsuits, a well-dressed man rose near the back of the courtroom to blast the court's 2010 Citizens United campaign finance decision, CNN reports. He shouted slogans like " Money is not speech," "Corporations are not people," and "Overturn Citizens United," before police removed him after a brief scuffle, reports Reuters. None of the nine justices commented on the outburst, which didn't make it into the official transcript. The last such interruption was during a debate on late-term abortion procedures in 2006, court officials say, and there was another protest in the chamber around 20 years ago. The protester, later identified as Noah Newkirk of Los Angeles, has been charged with making a "harangue or oration, or utter[ing] loud or threatening or abusive language in the Supreme Court Building," SCOTUSblog reports.