November 21, 2005
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT:
media@aclu.org PROVIDENCE, RI -- The
American Civil Liberties Union of Rhode Island today filed a federal lawsuit
challenging state laws and regulations that allow billboard signs on buildings
near highways only if the sign promotes an activity taking place on the
property. The ACLU filed the lawsuit on behalf of Anthony Joseph Vono and his
business, Specialty Promotions, which have been cited by the state Department of
Transportation for having a billboard sign that advertises “off premises
activity.”
“The issue in this case is not whether billboards are
good or bad, but whether the state should have the right to decide what a
particular billboard sign can say,” said ACLU of Rhode Island Executive Director
Steven Brown. “We think the simple answer to that should be
‘no.’”
The building in which Vono’s business operates, on 101 Poe
Street in Providence, includes a roof sign, which is visible on I-95 North
shortly before the I-195 split. Earlier this year, when the sign was advertising
the non-profit agency Casey Family Services, Vono was notified by DOT that he
had to take it down because it advertised “an activity not occurring on the
property where it is located.”
The ACLU lawsuit, filed by
volunteer attorney John W. Dineen, raises a number of legal challenges to the
state laws and regulations that the DOT is citing to support its position. The
ACLU argues that the DOT’s distinction between on-premises and off-premises
messages “contravenes [Vono’s] First Amendment right to be free from
content-based regulation of his speech.” The ACLU further argues that this
distinction improperly disadvantages “non-commercial and political speech, which
would generally fall in the off-premises category, more severely than commercial
speech.”
“The government certainly can regulate safety issues on
highways,” said Dineen. “But how can it justify telling Mr. Vono he has to
change the message if he wants to keep his sign?” Dineen noted that Vono
previously had a “Carcieri for Governor” sign on the same billboard, and it was
displayed without incident.
The lawsuit also claims that the DOT
has been “inconsistent and arbitrary in its application and enforcement of the
rules.” The lawsuit seeks a court order striking down the applicable provisions
that make this distinction.
The ACLU’s Brown said that
Vono’s sign is far from the only one carrying off-premises
advertising.
“One need only take a short ride along any of Rhode
Island’s major highways to see that Mr. Vono has been singled out for arbitrary
treatment,” said Brown.
For a copy of the complaint, go to: www.riaclu.org/documents/Vono-Complaint.pdf
