Adventists File Lawsuit Against U.S. City for Banning Literature Evangelism

[news]

A U.S. conference of the Seventh-day Adventist Church and two of its members filed a lawsuit against an Arkansas city on Jan. 19 over a local ordinance that prevents door-to-door literature evangelism.

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[phkrause]

I guess now Trump will know who we are!! LOL

[LifeHiscost]

   5593

AN ORDINANCE TO ENACT §116.02 DOOR TO DOOR SOLICITATION REGULATIONS FOR PRIVATE RESIDENCES INTO THE FAYETTEVILLE CODE

WHEREAS, some citizens have been inconvenienced and disturbed by unknown and not properly identified vendors and peddlers coming to their private residences to sell goods or request donations; and

WHEREAS, commercial vendors and peddlers who wish to sell door to door in Fayetteville should be regulated to ensure these vendors have proper identification and will abide by all restrictions as to the when and where such vending will be allowed; and

WHEREAS, persons who wish to express religious and political beliefs have First Amendment Free Speech rights which cannot be impinged by the City and thus may not be prohibited from going door to door to exercise their First Amendment rights.

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT ORDAINED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF FAYETTEVILLE, ARKANSAS:

Section 1. That the City Council of the City of Fayetteville, Arkansas hereby enacts § 116.02 Door to door solicitation at private residences of the Fayetteville Code as shown in Exhibit A attached hereto and made a part hereof.

PASSED and APPROVED this 2nd day of July, 2013.

Exhibit A

116.02 – Door to Door Solicitation at Private Residence

(A) Definitions. The following words, terms and phrases and their derivations, when used in this section, shall have the meanings ascribed to them in the section, except where the context clearly indicates a different meaning:

(1) Charitable activity means any activity carried on for unselfish, civic or humanitarian motives or for the benefit of others and not for private gain.

(2) Charitable organization means a non-profit organization holding a tax exemption certificate from the Internal Revenue Service pursuant to § 501 et seq., and any amendments thereto.

(3) Peddler means any person who goes to the door of any private residence in the city, not having been invited by the occupant thereof, carrying or transporting goods, wares, merchandise or personal property of any nature and offering the same for sale..

(4) Solicitor means any person who goes to the door of any private residence in the city, not having been invited by the occupant thereof, for the purpose of taking or intending to take orders for the sale of goods, magazines, wares, merchandise or other personal property of any nature for future delivery, or for services to be performed in the future. A representative or employee of a newspaper of general circulation in Fayetteville may leave a sample current copy of the newspaper with subscription information near the door of a private residence without being a “solicitor” as long as the representative/employee makes no efforts at that time to contact or speak with the resident.

(5) Principal means the person or other legal entity whose goods, merchandise, personal property or services are being peddled or solicited.

(B) Obtaining “no soliciting/no peddling” decal or sign. The Planning Department shall provide any resident of the city a decal which reads, “no soliciting/no peddling.” This decal may be posted at the front of the any private residence in the city and by posting said notification, any solicitor or peddler has notice that soliciting or peddling at this address is prohibited by city ordinance. A resident may also post a “no soliciting” sign pursuant to §116.01.

(C) Principal permit. No peddling or solicitation shall be conducted within the city without a principal permit being issued. The cost for the principal to obtain a solicitor/peddler’s permit is $40.00, and shall be paid to the business office before any peddling or soliciting is conducted within the city. The permit shall expire on December 31 in the year the permit is issued. In addition to the principal’s permit, the principal must also comply with the city’s business license requirement pursuant to Chapter 118: Business Registry and License of the Fayetteville Code. To obtain a permit, a representative of the principal shall provide a written, signed application stating:

(1) The name, address, telephone number, type of organization, and contact person for the principal applicant;

(2) The nature of the products or services involved;

(3) The proposed method of operation in the city;

(4) A list of all persons who will peddle or solicit in the city on behalf of the principal in the city.

(D) Permit for peddlers/solicitors. In addition to the principal permit, each peddler or solicitor acting for the principal shall also obtain a permit from the Planning Department before peddling or soliciting within the city. The cost to obtain a peddler/solicitor permit is $5.00. In applying for the permit, each applicant shall provide the following to the Planning Department:

(1) The name of the principal applicant for whom they are going to act as a peddler or solicitor;

(2) The name, address, and telephone number of the person who is going to act as a peddler or solicitor, and in addition, they must also provide photo identification;

(3) A signed statement under oath that the person applying to be a peddler/solicitor has not been convicted of felonies or any misdemeanors involving theft, sexual offenses, or violence;

(4) A criminal background check from the Arkansas State Police and from the State Police of the State which issued the Driver’s License of the applicant which shows that peddler or solicitor has not, within the preceding five years, been convicted of any felonies, or any misdemeanors involving theft, sexual offense or violence, nor has been incarcerated in prison at any time during the last five years. No person shall be issued a permit as a peddler or solicitor that has been convicted of any of the offenses set out above nor in prison during the last five years.

(E) Prohibition. It is unlawful for any solicitor or peddler to:

(1) Peddle or solicit within the city without having a copy of this section on their person, as well as a copy of their permit issued by the Planning Development, as well as photo identification visible, which is provided by the principal, identifying the person peddling or soliciting;

(2) Enter upon any private residence, knock on the door, ring the doorbell, or otherwise attempt to gain admittance at the residence when the premises’ owner or tenant has posted at the entry of the residence a decal or sign bearing the words, “no soliciting/no peddling,” “no peddlers,” “no solicitors,” “no trespassing,” or other words of similar import;

(3) Conduct the activities of peddler or solicitor and knock on the door, ring the doorbell, or otherwise attempt to gain admittance at the residence between the hours of 9:00 p.m. and 10:00 a.m;

(4) Remain at the private residence when requested to leave, or to otherwise conduct business in a manner which a reasonable person would find obscene, threatening, intimidating or abusive;

(5) Make any false or misleading statements about the product or service being sold, including untrue statements of endorsement;

(6) Claim to have the endorsement of the city based on the city having issued a permit to that person;

(7) Fail to disclose his or her name and the name of the principal whom he represents at the outset of the initial conversation;

(8) Fail to immediately leave the premises or residence after having been asked by the owner or occupant thereof to do so.

(F) Penalty. Any violation of this section shall be deemed a nuisance and punishable by a fine as provided by §10.99 of the Fayetteville Code.

(G) Exemptions. Officers or employees of the City, County, State or Federal government, or any subdivision thereof shall be exempt for the requirements of this section when on official business.

(H) Free permits for nonprofit corporations not seeking donations.

After supplying adequate proof to the Planning Department that the nonprofit charitable organization is a charity with a current §501 (c)(3) IRS exception, the Planning Department may issue the permits required by this section without charge to the persons desiring to exercise their free speech rights as long as no solicitations for donations are made and no donations accepted.

(I) Permits waived for political and religious free speech and for Fayetteville children through high school senior status.

(1) Although everyone going door to door must respect and not go to the door of a citizen who has personally posted a “no solicitation” type sign, may only go door to door during the daytime/evening hours allowed in (E)(3), and must conform to the requirements of (E)(4), (E)(6), (E)(8), persons exercising their First Amendment political or religious free speech rights are otherwise exempted from this section.

(2) Fayetteville children through high school senior status must abide by the restrictions found in (E)(2)(3)(4) and (8) but are otherwise exempt from the remainder of this section.

(J) Revocation of permit. Any permit issued pursuant to the provision of this section may be suspended or revoked for good cause by the Director of Development Services. Good cause for such suspension or revocation shall include any violation of this section, or any other reason for suspensions or revocation as set out in §118.03 of the Fayetteville Code and said violations are hereby incorporated herein by reference. The procedure for suspension or revocation under this section shall be the same procedure as set out in §118.03 of the Fayetteville Code and said procedure is hereby incorporated herein by reference.  [/quote]

 

It seems to me if a party wishes to spend $40.00 to obtain a legal permit to be posted on their private property, this should be their right over and above others wishing to trespass on their property, even to accomplish a righteous objective. Even God allows people to turn Him away from their door, private property or not. It's the continuing story of The Great Controversy, another sign indicating the inroads of the enemy of souls.

God is Love!~Jesus saves!    

[LifeHiscost]

According to this table from the FBI: Expanded Homicide Data Table 10

In 2013 there was 12,253 murders, and 780 of those were associated with robbery or burglary (6.4%), with 94 of those burglaries (0.7%). So, "home invasions" isn't part of the list, but there's at least 94 murders definitely involving invasion of the home, and potentially some more home invasions in the "robbery" category.

This does not matter to me. As you can see, the number of murders during home invasions is more than zero. If my home is invaded and someone intends to do me harm, these numbers don't matter.https://www.quora.com/How-many-people-are-killed-during-home-invasions-every-year   

God is Love!~Jesus saves! 

[phkrause]

34 minutes ago, LifeHiscost said:

This does not matter to me. As you can see, the number of murders during home invasions is more than zero. If my home is invaded and someone intends to do me harm, these numbers don't matter. 

Its all well and good to say those words, but when many are confronted with that situation, will they be able to actually do it??

[LifeHiscost]

15 minutes ago, phkrause said:

Its all well and good to say those words, but when many are confronted with that situation, will they be able to actually do it??

There were suppose to be quotes around that, they were not my words. However you make a good point.

God is Love!~Jesus saves!

[phkrause]

Yes, at first I did think they were your words. But after reading the link, I realized they were not. My statement was in general.

[Gregory Matthews]

I suspect that this litigation is a slam-dunk.  It appears to me to be illegal.

 

[Aliensanctuary]

Is an ordinance requiring a permit to solicit door-to-door within city limits illegal? I think that I would be in favor of it to reduce the number of interruptions in my life. We got rid of the land line because of the number of unwanted telemarketer calls, especially in the evening. 

[Green Cochoa]

1 hour ago, Aliensanctuary said:

Is an ordinance requiring a permit to solicit door-to-door within city limits illegal?

Yes, such an ordinance is illegal IF it attempts to proscribe religious solicitation without a permit.  Religious solicitation, including canvassing, is part of protected free speech and the exercise of religion, and is therefore exempt from such an ordinance per federal law.

[Gregory Matthews]

Green is correct, as it applies to the United States of America.

This lawsuit is a "slam-dunk" in my opinion.  The 1st Amendment to the Constitution applies here and Green is correct.

As to the legality in other countries, that is a different situation.

[Green Cochoa]

In a ruling handed down on June 17, 2002, the Supreme Court held the following:

A town ordinance's provisions making it a misdemeanor to engage in door-to-door advocacy without first registering with town officials and receiving a permit violates the First Amendment as it applies to religious proselytizing, anonymous political speech, and the distribution of handbills.

That more or less settles it, as I see it.

 

Source:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Watchtower_Bible_%26_Tract_Society_of_New_York,_Inc._v._Village_of_Stratton