City of Ladue, et al. v. Margaret P. Gilleo (512 U.S. 43)
U.S. Supreme Court · decided June 13, 1994 · Supreme Court Database (Spaeth)
- Citation
- 512 U.S. 43 · 114 S. Ct. 2038
- Decided
- June 13, 1994
- Term
- October Term 1993
- Vote
- 9–0
- Majority author
- Justice Stevens
- Issue area
- First Amendment
- Disposition
- Affirmed
- Outcome
- Petitioning party lost
- Ideological direction
- Liberal
- Constitutional ruling
- Local ordinance held unconstitutional
Opinion excerpt
Justice Stevens delivered the opinion of the Court. An ordinance of the City of Ladue prohibits homeowners from displaying any signs on their property except “residence identification” signs, “for sale” signs, and signs warning of safety hazards. The ordinance permits commercial establishments, churches, and nonprofit organizations to erect certain signs that are not allowed at residences. The question presented is whether the ordinance violates a Ladue resident’s right to free speech. I Respondent Margaret P. Gilleo owns one of the 57 single-family homes in the Willow Hill subdivision of Ladue. On December 8, 1990, she placed on her front lawn a 24- by 36-inch sign printed with the words, “Say No to War in the Persian Gulf, Call Congress Now.” After that sign disappeared, Gilleo put up another but it was knocked to the ground. When Gilleo reported these incidents to the police, they advised her that such signs were prohibited in Ladue. The city council denied her petition for a variance. Gilleo then filed this action under 42 U. S. C. § 1983 against the City, the mayor, and members, of the city council, alleging that Ladue’s sign ordinance violated her First Amendment right of free speech. The District Court issued a preliminary injunction against enforcement of the ordinance. 774 F. Supp. 1559 (ED Mo. 1991). Gilleo then placed an 8.5- by 11-inch sign in the second story…
Excerpt of a 30,261-character opinion. The full text and citation network load in the interactive viewer above.