Church of Scientology Flag Service Org., Inc. v. City of Clearwater
| Decision Date | 13 November 1985 |
| Docket Number | Nos. 84-3232,84-3543,84-3236,s. 84-3232 |
| Citation | 777 F.2d 598 |
| Parties | CHURCH OF SCIENTOLOGY FLAG SERVICE ORG., INC., Plaintiff-Appellee, v. CITY OF CLEARWATER, et al., Defendants-Appellants. AMERICANS UNITED FOR SEPARATION OF CHURCH AND STATE, et al., Plaintiffs- Appellees, v. CITY OF CLEARWATER, FLORIDA, etc., et al., Defendants-Appellants. CHURCH OF SCIENTOLOGY FLAG SERVICE ORG., INC., Plaintiff-Appellant, v. CITY OF CLEARWATER, et al., Defendants-Appellees. AMERICANS UNITED FOR SEPARATION OF CHURCH AND STATE, et al., Plaintiffs- Appellants, v. CITY OF CLEARWATER, FLORIDA, et al., Defendants-Appellees. to 84-3546, 84-3574 and 84-3575. |
| Court | U.S. Court of Appeals — Eleventh Circuit |
Lawrence R. Velvel, Rockville, Md., Alan S. Zimmet, City Atty's. Office, Clearwater, Fla., for City of Clearwater.
Eric M. Lieberman, New York, N.Y., Paul B. Johnson, Tampa, Fla., for Church of Scientology Flag Service Org., Inc.
Lee Boothby, Berrien Springs, Mich., Frank M. Palmour, Maitland, Fla., for Americans United for Separation of Church and State, et al.
James R. Wolf, Gen. Counsel, Harry Morrison, Jr., Asst. Gen. Counsel, Tallahassee, Fla., for amicus Fla. League of Cities.
Appeals from the United States District Court for the Middle District of Florida.
Before TJOFLAT and KRAVITCH, Circuit Judges, and DUMBAULD *, District Judge.
These consolidated appeals involve challenges brought by two separate plaintiff groups to the constitutionality of a repealed City of Clearwater, Florida ordinance and its successor ordinance, both of which regulated charitable solicitation. 1 The district court declared the first ordinance unconstitutional and permanently enjoined its enforcement. The district court declared the second ordinance facially constitutional and certified the issue to this court for interlocutory appeal pursuant to 28 U.S.C. Sec. 1292(b) (1982).
We vacate the district court's first decision for want of a case or controversy. We decline to pass on its second decision because leave to appeal pursuant to section 1292(b) was improvidently granted.
On October 6, 1983, the City of Clearwater enacted Ordinance No. 3091-83 which sought to regulate charitable solicitation. The ordinance required charitable organizations that wished to solicit funds in Clearwater to register with the City, maintain certain records, disclose the sources and uses of their contributions, refrain from engaging in fraudulent solicitation practices, and submit to an investigation by the City Attorney on the complaint of ten or more individuals. The operative provisions of the ordinance were to become effective on January 31, 1984.
Americans United for Separation of Church and State and several other named plaintiffs (collectively "Americans United") brought a ten-count action in the district court on January 20, 1984 to enjoin the City and its officers from enforcing the ordinance. Each count raised a discrete constitutional claim. 2 On January 23, the Church of Scientology Flag Service Organization, Inc. ("Church of Scientology") brought a separate twelve-count action for injunctive relief on grounds similar to those raised by Americans United. 3 Both plaintiffs moved the court for a temporary restraining order pursuant to Fed.R.Civ.P. 65(b); such an order became unnecessary, however, when the City agreed not to enforce the ordinance pending a final determination on the merits.
The court scheduled a final hearing on the plaintiffs' prayers for a permanent injunction 4 on March 9, 1984. At the hearing, the parties requested the court to limit the scope of the hearing to the facial validity of the ordinance and defer to a subsequent hearing its decision on the plaintiffs' claims that the ordinance was unconstitutional as applied. The court granted the parties' request and confined the hearing to the facial constitutionality of the ordinance. The parties presented no evidence save a brief stipulation between the Church of Scientology and the City. They stipulated to the existence of the ordinance, that the City was a municipality of the state, that the Church of Scientology was a Florida corporation, and that it sells books and pamphlets and pays some Scientologists commissions on funds they solicit. These parties also stipulated that the court had subject matter jurisdiction over their case and that venue was proper. Finally, the City advised the court that it would not challenge the Church of Scientology's standing to bring the suit, except as to those claims alleging that the ordinance violated the freedom of religion clauses of the first amendment.
Americans United and the City stipulated to nothing. On the standing issue, the City maintained an inconsistent position. The City advised the court that it would not contest any of the Americans United plaintiffs' standing to sue; at the same time, the City said it reserved the right to challenge the standing of any of such plaintiffs to prosecute any of their claims. The court did not resolve this inconsistency.
After entertaining argument from counsel on the facial validity of the ordinance, the court directed counsel to file post-hearing memorandums by March 16. On March 15, the City Commission enacted an emergency ordinance, No. 3479-84, as an amendment to Ordinance No. 3091-83. The amended ordinance consisted of a comprehensive scheme to regulate charitable solicitation, making substantial modifications to Ordinance No. 3091-83. It provided for the repeal of any conflicting ordinance, thereby effectively repealing Ordinance No. 3091-83. As an emergency ordinance, it would have automatically expired at the end of ninety days if not passed as a non-emergency ordinance within that time. 5
The City promptly notified the district court and the plaintiffs' counsel of the amended ordinance. Rather than allowing the plaintiffs to amend their complaints and adjudicate the validity of the new ordinance, the district court, on March 28, proceeded to determine the facial validity of repealed Ordinance No. 3091-83. Without specifying which of the several counts of the plaintiffs' complaints it was deciding, the court declared the repealed ordinance unconstitutional and permanently enjoined its application and enforcement. The court held that the ordinance was overly burdensome of first amendment rights, given the legitimate state interest involved, and was also impermissibly vague and discriminatory.
The court justified its jurisdiction to adjudicate the validity of the repealed ordinance on two grounds. First, a finding of no jurisdiction would encourage cities to enact laws affecting the constitutional rights of its citizens and, if challenged in court, simply amend such laws, thereby prolonging the period of uncertainty as to citizens' rights. Second, the court, noting the large number of cases pending on its docket, stated that it could not permit the litigants to delay the completion of their cases by amending their pleadings at the eleventh-hour and thereby occupy "someone else's day" in court. Accordingly, an immediate decision terminating the instant cases was mandated. The court terminated the Americans United case by granting the injunctive relief sought and "dismissing" the case. 6 The court similarly terminated the Church of Scientology case, granting the relief sought and dismissing eleven of the twelve counts of the plaintiff's complaint. 7 The court's dispositive order failed to dispose of the twelfth count, however. Consequently, the court retained jurisdiction of that much of the Church of Scientology case.
The City appealed the court's injunctive orders. We assume jurisdiction of these appeals pursuant to 28 U.S.C. Sec. 1292(a)(1) (1982). 8
On April 20, 1984, the Church of Scientology, seeking to enjoin the enforcement of the emergency ordinance, No. 3479-84, moved the district court for leave to amend the remaining count of its complaint. Its proposed amendment presented the same constitutional challenges that had been addressed to the original ordinance. At the same time, the Church of Scientology moved the court to issue a temporary restraining order prohibiting the City from enforcing Ordinance No. 3479-84. A hearing on these motions commenced one hour after they were filed. The Church of Scientology appeared, but the City did not. The court granted both motions and set April 27 as the date it would hear the plaintiff's application for a preliminary injunction. The hearing was continued, and the parties stipulated to an extension of the temporary restraining order pending resolution of such application.
The City of Clearwater enacted Ordinance No. 3479-84 as a permanent ordinance on May 17, 1984. On May 21, Americans United instituted a new action in the district court seeking injunctive relief and challenging the constitutionality of Ordinance No. 3479-84 on the grounds raised in its previous suit. Simultaneously, Americans United moved for a temporary restraining order, which the court granted. On May 24, the Church of Scientology also filed a new suit, seeking the same relief as Americans United on essentially the same grounds. At this point, the Church of Scientology had two identical suits pending, the newly filed suit and the previous case whose complaint had been amended. 9 On May 30, the court set July 13 as the date for a final hearing on both plaintiffs' applications for injunctive relief. 10 Shortly thereafter, the City moved, pursuant to Fed.R.Civ.P. 12(b)(6), to dismiss the plaintiffs' complaints for failure to state a claim for relief, and Americans United moved the court for summary judgment. On June 19, the court issued an order informing the parties that it would limit the scope of the final hearing to the question of the facial constitutionality of the new ordinance. 11
The final hearing was held, as scheduled, on July 13, 1984. When the hearing began, the court announced that it would not consider the merits...
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