Not-guilty plea entered by Hansens

Friday, May 28, 2004 | 9:30 a.m.

SUN CAPITAL BUREAU

CARSON CITY -- In a case that the ACLU says raises serious constitutional issues, Janine Hansen and her son pleaded not guilty in Reno Municipal Court Thursday to misdemeanor charges of trespassing while circulating an initiative petition at the bus station in a case that raises constitutional issues.

Allen Lichtenstein, attorney for the American Civil Liberties Union of Nevada, said he expects Hansen's criminal case will be delayed while a civil rights suit is filed in federal court.

The suit would ask the court to protect the right of people to gather signatures in public places such as outside state offices and the campuses of the university system, Lichtenstein said.

That suit will be brought within several weeks, he said. In the meantime, he will file a petition in Reno municipal court to hold any further action on the trespassing charges.

Hansen and her son Zachary Triggs were arrested May 6 while they were gathering signatures at the municipal bus station for a petition to bar public employees from serving in the Legislature and a referendum to repeal the $833 million tax increase lawmakers passed last year.

Members of Nevadans for Sound Government have also been stopped on occasion while collecting signatures in public places, such as the state Department of Motor Vehicles and at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas after a speech by first lady Laura Bush.