Handbill law found unconstitutional -- again

The U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals has now twice rejected Clark County's handbilling ordinance as unconstitutional, but lawyers involved in the case say the illegal law is still being enforced along the Strip.

The latest setback in Clark County's war against smut peddlers, who clogged Strip sidewalks, offended tourists and created piles of litter, came Monday when a panel of the federal appeals court declined to grant the county's request for a rehearing.

The court also declined a request for a hearing before the full Ninth Circuit Court.

The decision leaves intact an August injunction from the appeals court ordering Clark County to stop enforcing the ordinance, passed in January 1997.

The ordinance prohibits off-premises commercial canvassing in areas surrounding the Strip and the Las Vegas Convention Center. The injunction declares the ordinance is too vague and prohibits constitutionally protected speech.

However, said ACLU attorney Alan Lichtenstein, Metro Police officers are still trying to run off handbillers by citing the outlawed ordinance despite the court ruling. He vowed that if it continues, the organization would seek to have them held in contempt of court.

Lichtenstein added that signs remain on Strip light poles declaring that the resort corridor is a no-handbilling-zone.

Complaints of enforcement have come primarily from people who have tried to pass out religious material but have been blocked by Metro officers or hotel security, he said.

"There are enough stories for us to believe that they are ignoring the court decision and there are enough signs left up to support that," Lichtenstein said. "It is pervasive throughout the resort corridor."

ACLU Director Gary Peck is demanding the signs be removed "immediately."

But District Attorney Stewart Bell said his office has had no complaints that the ordinance is still being enforced.

Assistant District Attorney Mike Davidson said that after the August decision, Metro agreed not to enforce the outlawed ordinance during the appeal process, but that doesn't keep police from enforcing other ordinances.

He noted, for example, that overly aggressive handbillers might be charged with battery.

Metro spokesman Officer Steve Meriwether cautioned that police are within the law to cite or arrest pamphleteers who obstruct pedestrians' passage.

"We will continue to provide safety for tourists and citizens alike," said Clark County Sheriff Jerry Keller. "The ordinance would have been another tool in providing that safety."

He noted that to comply with the Ninth Circuit Court decision, white lines painted along portions of publicly owned Strip sidewalk now designate areas between Sahara and Tropicana avenues where handbillers can pass out literature and pamphlets.

Those locations include areas in front of the MGM, Bally's and Monte Carlo hotel-casinos.

The case began when Richard Soranno, whose Hillsboro Enterprises distributes leaflets that advertise erotic dance entertainment services, sued the county. A District Court judge upheld the ordinance, but Soranno appealed, and the Ninth Circuit issued the injunction.

The latest court decision opens the door for the unrestricted distribution of pamphlets advertising outcall entertainment services.

Davidson said the DA's office, Metro and the County Commission will now have to weigh the options and decide the next course in the legal battle.

"I think that most people believe in free speech," said Bell, "but not many envision that the First Amendment applies to smut peddlers on the Strip."

One option, said Davidson, is to appeal the case to the U.S. Supreme Court, "or we can look to redraft the relevent provisions of the ordinance to accomplish the legitimate goal of protecing the public from the illegally obnoxious behavior of handbillers."

Clark County Commission Chairman Bruce Woodbury, who learned late Monday of the court's decision, said it is premature to determine the next step.

"We need to get a report from legal counsel as to how they view the matter and decide whether there is further appeal possible," Woodbury said.

He said the commission members feel strongly about implementing some type of handbill ordinance.

"We feel the type of handbilling taking place on the resort corridor is detrimental to public welfare," Woodbury said. "The aggressive nature of the handbilling interferes with pedestrians and there is a great deal of litter involved."

SUN REPORTERS Adrienne Packer and Karen Zekan contributed to this story.

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