Arcata Resident Sues City Over Panhandling Ordinance

An Arcata man has filed a lawsuit against the City of Arcata for its panhandling ordinance. Richard Salzman filed what his lawyer is calling a "tax payers suit," alleging the city's panhandling ordinance is unconstitutional. Salzman's lawyer wrote a letter to the Arcata City Council saying the ordinances criminalize begging in most of the city where it would be fruitful to beg. It goes on to say the First Amendment clearly protects charitable solicitations and that now a Girl Scout cannot sell cookies on the city's streets. The plaintiff says he has no problem with banning aggressive panhandling but rather, disagrees with "simple panhandling" in most of downtown Arcata. No one from the City of Arcata was available to speak to News Channel 3 Friday afternoon.