Tuesday, September 11, 2012
NV: Littering as free speech?
I see the dilemma. It's the people who throw the handbills away that should be fined for littering but taking a handbill is just a form of politeness for many people
"Some tourists try to dissuade them by directing icy glares their way. ...
But some tourists accept the pamphlets and glossy cards that advertise all-but-nude exotic dancers. Then, more often than not, they toss the material in the trash. Or if a trash can isn't nearby, onto the sidewalk -- creating an endless X-rated litter problem that Las Vegas officials are now trying to clean up.
A new ordinance requires handbillers to pick up litter within a 25-foot radius on the sidewalk. But there's a hitch: The law might run afoul of the First Amendment."
Las Vegas tried directly to prohibit handbilling in 1997. The ACLU intervened in court and won. Subsequent court rulings have established that sidewalks along the Strip are public thoroughfares where the First Amendment protects freedom of speech, Lichtenstein said.
To Lichtenstein, how police will enforce a law that requires handbillers to clean up their area no less than every 15 minutes is an obvious problem. "I'm not sure the police even understand what they're supposed to be enforcing," he said. "Depending on what happens, we may be back in court again."
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9 comments:
The police are supposed to be enforcing litter laws - whats the problem? If you don't want to scare the litterbug tourists away, then pay for some street sweepers. Just add 5 cents to the bed tax or something like that to generate funds. I'd rather see people get punnished for unacceptable behaviour - namely trowing their trash on the sidewalk. Is it too puch trouble to put it in your pocket or hold it until the next trash can? It's a minor thing, but it is just another example of the breakdown of socity and civility.
Now let's have the board troll rudely slam me.
I agree.
Eco-wackos put out a bunch of hand bills SAVE THE TREES a gust of wind blows the handbills all over the place then fine to eco-wackos
The cops will keep arresting for violations of non-laws such as this, and keep trying to get qualified immunity when they are accused of kidnapping or false arrest for the arrest.
They should be prosecuted. How about if someone just prosecutes them anyway even if the courts say they have qualified immunity, and then if they try to punish the prosecutor he can try to get qualified immunity.
If you are a cop and you know that you are arresting someone for leafletting even if you believe it is legal to make such an arrest, you are probably evil, because you still know you are arresting someone for merely trying to spread a message.
you don't need a new law. Merely cite the handbillers for littering if the handbills they are handing out are in their vicinity, say 25 feet. Since they are standing there with a handful of the "litter" it shouldn't be hard to make a case. Even if they cannot obtain a conviction, the inconvenience of the arrest interfering with the handbill distribution will get them to keep their area tidy without running afoul of the the First Ammendment
Anonymous 10:09,
So you would have the police arrest someone for a crime which they did not commit? You would be happy with the police arresting someone for a crime where the police did not witness the infraction?
Nevada law 475.030 holds the person who litters responsible for the infraction - not the person who gave them the item cast to the ground. Using your thinking, the police should arrest a newspaper editor if someone throws a newspaper on the ground. So despite your assertion, this would require a new law - one that would extend powers of the state far beyond personnel or corporate responsibility.
Given the general religious and political bent of most of the readers here, look at it another way:
What if the people were handing out Bible tracts and the recipients were taking them and tossing them? Should those distributing the tracts be liable for the littering or those who tossed the tracts?
I guess no one has caught on to the most obvious solution to this problem.
Require those handbills to carry a deposit value so anyone returning a bunch of them can get paid for it. The provider of those bills could then reuse them or dispose of them.
What's wrong with you? Don't you like strippers?
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