Fed appeals court won’t hear Fremont Street Experience case

Monday, Aug. 18, 2003 | 9:47 a.m.

The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has refused to hear a Las Vegas appeal of a recent federal court ruling defending individuals' constitutional rights to pass out leaflets and sell certain items at the Fremont Street Experience.

Las Vegas filed the appeal in July. Mayor Oscar Goodman said when the final ruling is made the issue will come down to whether the Fremont Street Experience is a public entity or a private entity.

The reviewing judges apparently agreed, deciding the street was public.

"I think it is a major victory for the public," American Civil Liberties Union attorney Allen Lichtenstein said Sunday.

City ordinances prohibit the passing out of leaflets, vending, solicitation and the temporary installation of booths, tables or stands unless authorized by the Fremont Street Experience.

Those restrictions prompted the American Civil Liberties Union of Nevada and others to file a civil rights lawsuit in 1997, saying the policies prohibit First Amendment activity such as charitable soliciting, distributing literature, picketing and selling message-bearing merchandise.

A three-judge panel of the 9th Circuit ruled just before Independence Day that the transformation of "sleazy" Fremont Street into the "glamorous" Fremont Street Experience does not trump the First Amendment.