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Thursday, September 15, 2005

Ind. Decisions - Federal Judge Barker upholds state's no-call list

The Indianapolis Star website is reporting:

A federal judge has ruled in favor of the state in a 3-year-old lawsuit by nonprofit groups challenging Indiana's popular "no-call" list.

U.S. District Court Judge Sarah Evans Barker issued a verdict without trial in favor of Indiana Attorney General Steve Carter, who defended the list.

In a 36-page opinion dated Sept. 6 and issued late Wednesday, Barker said the law is "content-neutral" and does not violate the First Amendment. * * *

Four nonprofit groups - the National Coalition of Prayer, the Kentucky-Indiana Chapter of Paralyzed Veterans of America, the Indiana Troopers Association and the Indiana Association of Chiefs of Police - filed the joint federal lawsuit in April 2002 to overturn the state's telemarketing law. The law had taken effect several months before the suit was filed. The troopers group dropped out of the litigation in May 2004.

The litigants contended the no-call list violated their constitutional right to free speech by limiting their ability to get their messages out, raise money and contact prior financial supporters.

Indiana's law allows charities to make solicitation calls if they use employees or volunteers to call. Professional fund-raisers are barred from calling numbers registered on the list.

I'm trying to obtain the ruling.

Posted by Marcia Oddi on September 15, 2005 11:48 AM
Posted to Ind Fed D.Ct. Decisions