Two Seminole County men sued the county over the constitutionality of a 2015 ordinance that outlaws panhandling in certain public situations.
The Gainesville-based nonprofit Southern Legal Counsel is representing the men and focuses on cases of human and civil rights. The group filed a federal lawsuit against Seminole County for what they argue violates First Amendment rights.
SLC is in the process of serving Seminole County with the complaint.
What builds the case
The county’s ordinance has been in place for close to a decade and restricts when, where, and how someone can ask for donations. It also targets what it calls “aggressive” panhandling, which it defines as blocking someone’s path or traffic, tapping on a vehicle’s window to get a driver’s attention, following or touching a person, or asking for a donation again after the person has refused.
Panhandling is also restricted within 25 feet of someone using an ATM machine or 1,000 feet from a school property or public park, where children are present. Violators can get up to 60 days in jail or a $500 fine.
SLC Attorney Dan Marshall said disruption and aggression are contextual, meaning they could change or be perceived differently on a case-by-case basis. But the main challenge, he said, is that it limits restrictions to “constitutionally protected speech and manners of expression” while excluding others.
In this case, according to the lawsuit documents, the ordinance is singling out charitable solicitation, giving it “different treatment than speech on other subject matter.” Marshall said that makes this a content-based law, which a 2014 federal ruling on a free speech case ruled as unconstitutional.
“That becomes a problem legally because it's what we call a content-based restriction on First Amendment rights because it only deals with one specific type and one specific subject of solicitation,” Marshall said.
The response and results
A statement released by SLC said that, in 2023, Seminole County Attorney David Shields replied in a letter that the county would “vigorously defend” its ordinance.
According to SLC, under the ordinance, Seminole County has made at least 130 arrests for violations, adding up to a total of 858 days in jail and approximately $39,147 in court costs, fees and fines.
“It's why we fight these laws. We think these laws are actually counterproductive because they do nothing to solve the underlying problem of homelessness,” Marshall said.
A spokeswoman said Seminole county does not comment on pending litigation.
In the case, Faustin v. Seminole County, the plaintiffs are asking for a preliminary injunction and compensation for damages.
“That injunction is the most pressing thing at this moment, ” Marshall said. “Because, while this lawsuit is being litigated, every day, our clients’ rights are being violated.”
In the statement, SLC Executive Director Jodi Siegel said the law firm has the goal to get jurisdictions to find alternate solutions to criminalization.
“We are bringing this lawsuit to force Seminole County to focus on constructive solutions to homelessness rather than arrest and jail,” Seigel said. “Since the U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling in Reed v. Town of Gilbert, every ordinance that prohibits charitable solicitation that has been challenged in federal court has been found unconstitutional. There is no carve-out in the Constitution for Seminole County.”
It's happening across Florida
The county’s ordinance is not unlike the HB 759 bill introduced in session earlier this year, which would have put a near-total halt on panhandling across the state, in some cases making it a felony. The bill failed on the House floor, but it followed suit with a recent nationwide crackdown on homelessness-related legislation that still awaits a ruling from the U.S. Supreme Court to decide whether communities can punish people without homes for sleeping in public places.
SLC has similar pending litigation with the city of Daytona Beach. In 2019, the Daytona Beach City Commission passed an ordinance regulating panhandling, including restricting intent, definitions, conduct, proximity, and location.
Daytona Beach officials are no longer able to enforce this, as a judge issued a preliminary injunction last year in favor of SLC that temporarily blocks the mandate. SLC is awaiting a trial summary judgment in the Daytona Beach case, which will decide if the case goes to trial in September or not.
In Jacksonville, a 2013 city ordinance banning panhandling was also recently challenged in another lawsuit. This time, the plaintiff is a nonprofit advocacy group known as The Homeless Voice, but, in May, a judge denied the group’s request for a temporary injunction. The ordinance applies to people asking for money, as well as people who donate.
Lillian Hernández Caraballo is a Report for America corps member.
