HOT SPRINGS, Ark. (AP) A federal judge in Arkansas has struck down an ordinance meant to restrict panhandling after concerns over its constitutionality.
The Arkansas Democrat-Gazette reports that U.S. District Judge Robert Dawson on Monday imposed a permanent injunction on a 2017 Hot Springs ordinance that outlaws physical interactions between pedestrians and people in vehicles. He says the ordinance violates the First Amendment by regulating speech based on content.
Similar concerns were cited in 2017 when a federal judge struck down a state law that prohibited begging. The decision followed a similar ruling he made in 2016 that ended a previous version of the law.
The American Civil Liberties Union of Arkansas filed all three cases on behalf of panhandlers, including Michael Rodgers. Rodgers says the ordinances were intentionally created to discriminate against beggars and panhandlers.
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