10th Circuit Overturns Panhandling Law

A unanimous panel of the 10th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals has held an Oklahoma City ordinance prohibiting panhandling on traffic medians unconstitutional.  The Associated Press reports that in an earlier ruling, a federal District Judge had upheld the ordinance.  The case of McGraw et al. v. City of Oklahoma City involves a lawsuit by two panhandlers, two joggers and an activist, all claiming that they had a  constitutional right to use traffic medians to solicit money, sell newspapers, jog and chat with friends, hand out leaflets and display political signs.

The appeals court ruling concluded that traffic medians are a public forum and that restricting the use of  medians for plaintiff’s  purposes violated their First Amendment rights.   The  Oklahoma chapter of American Civil Liberties Union was thrilled by the ruling, telling reporters “….what it means is that protesters, panhandlers, Curbside Chronicle vendors, joggers, journalists…can return to Oklahoma City medians to express themselves…”

This is great news for commuters who enjoy twitching, mentally ill crack addicts tapping on their car windows to beg for money while they are stuck at a stoplight.  It is also likely that Black Lives Matter and Antifa protesters will take full advantage of the opportunity to harass drivers waiting at stoplights as well.   No word on whether Oklahoma City plans to appeal the decision.