Reed v. Town of Gilbert

Summary

Pastor Clyde Reed of Good News Community Church relied on small signs pointing people to his services, since his small congregation often had to meet at different locations such as public schools. But according to the town of Gilbert, Arizona, the church signs could only be six square feet, displayed for no more than 14 hours, and limited to four per property. By comparison, a political sign could be up to 32 square feet and displayed for months at a time, and an ideological sign could be displayed indefinitely with no limit to how many could be posted. Such disparate treatment is unfair and unconstitutional. That’s why ADF stepped in and represented Pastor Reed all the way to the Supreme Court.

The Court ruled in favor of Pastor Reed by an overwhelming 9-0 vote. The decision made it abundantly clear that Gilbert had violated the Free Speech rights of the church by discriminating against their speech. Churches throughout the country should be able to communicate to the public on the same terms as other organizations, political parties, or businesses.

Case timeline

March 2007: ADF attorneys filed a lawsuit on behalf of Good News Community Church alleging the Town of Gilbert’s sign code illegally discriminated against some groups’ signs based on their content.
April 2007: The Town of Gilbert agreed to temporarily halt enforcement of the sign code against Good News Community Church.
May 2007: The U.S. District Court for the District of Arizona granted the agreement between Gilbert and the church to halt enforcement of the sign code.
January 2008: Gilbert amended the sign code, but it still included the same discrimination against the church’s signs. ADF attorneys amended their complaint and challenged the new sign code.
February 2013: After the district court denied the church’s petition to halt enforcement of the sign code, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit affirmed the district court’s decision. ADF attorneys then appealed to the Supreme Court.
July 2014: The Supreme Court agreed to hear Good News Community Church’s case.
June 2015: In a 9-0 decision, the Supreme Court struck down Gilbert’s sign code, ruling that it violated the First Amendment rights of Good News Community Church.