SOUTHERN LEGAL COUNSEL, PRO BONO ATTORNEYS FILE LAWSUIT CHALLENGING DAYTONA BEACH ORDINANCE THAT CRIMINALIZES REQUESTS FOR HELP
DAYTONA BEACH, FL (Nov. 28, 2022) – Southern Legal Counsel, along with pro bono attorneys Sabarish Neelakanta of SPN Law and Paul George of Holland & Knight, today filed a federal lawsuit challenging a Daytona Beach ordinance that prohibits asking for donations in certain public spaces.
The lawsuit, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida, Orlando Division, seeks a preliminary and permanent injunction against enforcement of the ordinance, a declaration that the challenged provisions are unconstitutional, and damages on behalf of the plaintiffs. The ordinance was adopted in February 2019 by the Daytona Beach City Commission and has been enforced against each of four plaintiffs.
It prohibits anyone from asking for money or other items of value in the specified areas, which include along streets, sidewalks, medians, and roadways that are traditional public fora, as well as within 20 feet of bus or trolley stops, city parking facilities and restrooms, ATMs, and the entrances or exits of commercially zoned property, and within 100 feet of schools and daycares.
The complaint notes that the ordinance applies only to charitable solicitation and does not restrict other forms of speech, “such as asking for votes, requesting signatures on a petition, encouraging people to join a church,” making it a content-based restriction limiting constitutionally protected speech.
“Charitable solicitation is a form of expression that is protected under the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution, whether the solicitation is for one’s personal needs or made charitably on behalf of other recipients,” the complaint states.
At the direction of the City of Daytona Beach, city police officers have enforced the ordinance by issuing warnings with a threat of arrest—and in some cases have arrested multiple times—residents Dennis Scott, Chad Driggers, Douglas Willis, and George Willis. Subsequently, in an effort to avoid arrest, all of them have taken measures that have curtailed their ability to solicit charitable donations that enable them to survive.
Scott, a person with a disability who sits in a wheelchair and solicits donations from passersby, including basic necessities such as food, water, clothing, hygiene products, and sometimes cash, has reduced the frequency of his solicitation. Other plaintiffs have stopped using a sign altogether or moved to soliciting outside the city limits.
Since the ordinance was enacted on Feb. 6, 2019, City police have made approximately 240 arrests for violations of § 66-1. Of these 240 arrests, approximately 231 resulted in custodial arrests where the individual being charged was immediately taken to jail, approximately 200 were arrests of individuals experiencing homelessness, and approximately 42 were made by plain-clothes officers. Individuals exercising their First Amendment right to request charity in Daytona Beach have collectively spent approximately 1,123 nights in jail and been assessed nearly $19,000 in court costs, fees and fines after being arrested for violations of the ordinance.
“This ordinance has had a chilling effect on the plaintiffs’ constitutionally protected speech,” said SLC attorney Chelsea Dunn, lead counsel. “City officials should be well aware by now that state and federal courts in Florida and throughout the United States have repeatedly enjoined cities from enforcing ordinances that prohibit asking for help in public places. It is no secret that this is a blatant violation of the First Amendment.”
The lawsuit follows cases brought against other Florida municipalities where laws criminalizing requests for charity have consequently been struck down, enjoined from enforcement, or repealed. These include Fort Lauderdale, Pompano Beach, Fort Myers, Tampa, West Palm Beach, Lake Worth Beach, and Miami.
The case is Scott v. City of Daytona Beach, Case. No. 6:22-cv-2192 (M. D. Fla.).
A copy of the complaint filed today is available here.