Balance of free speech, safety

It isn’t often that opposing parties in a legal dispute both claim victory.

But Open Carry Tarrant County and the city of Arlington seem content with a federal judge’s ruling to uphold the city’s modified regulation regarding the distribution of materials at intersections and to award legal fees to the gun rights group that challenged an earlier ordinance.

Last year, Judge Reed O’Connor enjoined the city from enforcing a law that prevented Open Carry activists from distributing literature at busy intersections. The city argued that the law preserved public safety. O’Connor said Arlington had a “number of less restrictive means of achieving its stated goals.”

The city retooled the ordinance, targeting specific intersections and allowing individuals to solicit from sidewalks, balancing speech protections with real public safety concerns. O’Connor agreed.

The city has not enforced the rule with the lawsuit pending. We’ll see if everybody is happy once enforcement begins.

This story was originally published August 13, 2015 at 5:58 PM with the headline "Balance of free speech, safety."