Wednesday, May 30, 2007
City of League City wins victory in Houston Chronicle lawsuit
In an opinion issued today, the U. S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit ruled that League City's ordinance which restricts the sale of items to occupants of motor vehicles at controlled intersections is constitutional.
The federal district court in Galveston had previously declared the City's ordinance to be unconstitutional and issued an injunction to prevent the City from enforcing it. The district court had also ruled that the Houston Chronicle and Galveston Daily News would not be entitled to recover any attorney's fees in their lawsuit against the City. Those rulings were reversed by the Fifth Circuit, which results in the injuction being vacated and the issue of attorney's fees being remanded to the district court for a trial.
This ruling represents a victory for the City, which had argued that the ordinance prohibiting the sale of newspapers from the medians inside the city limits was constitutional and necessary to the interests of public safety. The ordinance was passed in response to complaints about newspapers being sold at the intersection of IH 45 and W. Main.
No coverage yet in The Chronicle or the Daily News about whether either newspaper (or both) intend to appeal to the US Supreme Court. Stay tuned....
The federal district court in Galveston had previously declared the City's ordinance to be unconstitutional and issued an injunction to prevent the City from enforcing it. The district court had also ruled that the Houston Chronicle and Galveston Daily News would not be entitled to recover any attorney's fees in their lawsuit against the City. Those rulings were reversed by the Fifth Circuit, which results in the injuction being vacated and the issue of attorney's fees being remanded to the district court for a trial.
This ruling represents a victory for the City, which had argued that the ordinance prohibiting the sale of newspapers from the medians inside the city limits was constitutional and necessary to the interests of public safety. The ordinance was passed in response to complaints about newspapers being sold at the intersection of IH 45 and W. Main.
No coverage yet in The Chronicle or the Daily News about whether either newspaper (or both) intend to appeal to the US Supreme Court. Stay tuned....
