Richard Hill, a Bolivar resident who protested Bolivar’s panhandling ordinance by carrying a sign that read “I NEED MONEY,” now has the support of the American Civil Liberties Union of Missouri. On September 18, 2015, they filed a federal lawsuit against the city for its unconstitutional panhandling ordinance enacted in March.
“Mr. Hill recognized that Bolivar’s new ordinance violated the First Amendment and cleverly tried to educate the community by walking around Bolivar with his sign,” explains Tony Rothert, legal director of the ACLU of Missouri. “He used this form of communication during the grace period before the ordinance would be enforced and hasn’t protested since for fear of being arrested and prosecuted.”
“The ACLU has a rich history of opposing laws that limit speech, especially when they target those who are most vulnerable, like the homeless,” said Jeffrey A. Mittman, executive director of the ACLU of Missouri. “Bolivar’s ordinance is so broad that it prohibits even street peddlers, unless they obtain peddler identification permits at a minimum cost of $25; a Girl Scout would have to sell a lot of cookies just to break even.”
Update: October 2015 The lawsuit was voluntarily dismissed and the City repealed its restrictions on begging and solicitation as part of a settlement.
“We are pleased that Bolivar recognized the problems with its speech restrictions that were pointed out in our lawsuit,” said Tony Rothert, legal director of the ACLU of Missouri. “Cities considering laws that regulate expressive activities should pause to make sure that their rules are necessary and narrowly tailored to promote some government interest weighty enough to outweigh the First Amendment rights of residents. Generally, the government should be in the business of promoting speech, not restricting it.”