The Ninth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals ruled against the Hare Krishnas asserting that the group did not have First Amendment protection for soliciting donations at the Los Angeles International Airport. The Court cited airport congestion as a key concern in rejecting the group’s lawsuit. (Metropolitan News-Enterprise, August 21, 2014, by Kenneth Ofgang)
Writing for Courthouse News Service, August 25, 2-14, Milt Policzer criticized the decision, “…we know that donating money is a form of speech. Apparently, money talk is only completely protected by the First Amendment if it’s being spoken by corporations or political donors.” Policzer found other ironies in the decision, “The rationale is that asking for money can cause congestion or disruption or fraud and duress in a crowded airport, but non-money talking doesn’t.”