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Ordinance would impose $25 fee for curbside panhandling of vehicle occupants
Richmond, VA -- The American Civil Liberties Union of Virginia has asked Richmond City Council and its Public Safety Committee to abandon attempts to pass an ordinance requiring a $25 permit to panhandle from vehicle occupants while on a sidewalk or curb.
In a letter and legal memo sent out earlier today, the ACLU says the proposal violates the free speech clause of the First Amendment. The ACLU is prepared to offer legal representation to panhandlers affected by the ordinance, should it pass in its current form.
“A $25 permit for curbside panhandling is tantamount to a ban on panhandling, which appears to be the intent of the ordinance,” said ACLU of Virginia Executive Director Kent Willis. “Government officials have often tried to hide panhandlers and other reminders of poverty in our midst. But panhandling is protected speech precisely because it conveys a social message – it’s not just a request for money, but also a declaration of need in our society.”
The Public Safety Committee addressed the ordinance at its October meeting, but delayed a vote until November 19, when it meets again. City Council put off a vote on the ordinance until the Public Safety Committee acts.
“The City can penalize drivers who make illegal stops, and it can penalize individuals who illegally walk into traffic,” said Willis. “But it can’t prevent panhandlers from exercising their constitutional right to ask for donations. Keep in mind that there are many perfectly safe and legal ways for drivers to pull away from traffic and make donations to panhandlers, all of which are banned by the proposed ordinance.”
In his letter, Willis, who drives in Richmond every day, asks Council to demonstrate that panhandlers have created a bona fide threat to traffic safety in Richmond.
Willis’s letter and a legal memo from ACLU of Virginia Legal Director Rebecca Glenberg were emailed and sent by regular post to members of City Council earlier today. A copy of the letter and legal memo can be found here.
Contact: Kent Willis, office: 804/644-8022