Day Laborers Have First Amendment Right to Solicit Work On City Streets
U.S. District Judge Consuelo Marshall ruled a Redondo Beach City ordinance that made it illegal for day laborers to solicit work on city streets violated the First Amendment right to free speech. Click here for an article relating to the ordinance and here for an article pertaining to the recent ruling. The judge also said that the ordinance was drafted so broadly that it could prevent children from setting up lemon aid stands on the street and possibly stop girl scouts from selling cookies.
The Redondo Beach ordinance was drafted using language in a similar ordinance adopted in Phoenix, Arizona. The Phoenix ordinance was upheld by the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals in 1986. California is part of the Ninth Circuit, but Judge Marshall found that there were differences between the two laws. The Redondo Beach City Attorney said that the City is considering an appeal of the ruling.