Court grants injunction to preclude enforcement of City ordinance prohibiting outdoor, unattended charitable donation bins.

This month, the Sixth Circuit agreed with the Federal judge who granted an injunction prohibiting the City of St. Johns from enforcing its ban on outdoor, unattended charitable donation bins.  The Court noted that the bins have been widely recognized as a form of free speech (since they are "not mere collection points for unwanted items, but are rather silent solicitors and advocates ...") , and that solicitations for charitable giving are within the protections of the First Amendment.  Since the ban constituted a "total prohibition" subject to "strict scrutiny," the trial judge was correct in anticipating that the charities would prevail ultimately--and therefore were entitled to a preliminary injunction against enforcement.