SAN DIEGO, Calif. — The City Attorney’s office has won a case filed against the San Diego Police Department for alleged violation of constitutional rights arising out of an arrest under the City’s public nudity ordinance at the 2011 Pride Event.
Plaintiff, William X. Walters, alleged that SDPD conspired with Pride organizers to enforce the City’s public nudity ordinance in a manner that discriminated based upon sexual orientation. The court held that, although there was evidence that Pride staff may have requested that SDPD “help get compliance” with the public nudity ordinance because families would be attending the event, there was no evidence of discrimination.
In the case handled by Deputy City Attorney Bonny Hsu, the court rejected claims against SDPD and the City, as well as Pride organizers:
“[T]he Court finds that Plaintiff proffers no competent evidence from which a reasonable fact finder could conclude that Walters’ arrest was based on his sexual orientation, or that it resulted from an unequal enforcement policy or practice concerning public nudity. Equally, there is no evidence that the San Diego Pride Defendants entered into a conspiracy with the SDPD or willfully sought to implement an unlawful policy of discriminatory and selective enforcement of San Diego’s public nudity laws.”
“We applaud SDPD and Pride organizers for doing their best to ensure compliance with the law,” said City Attorney Jan Goldsmith. “This was not a conspiracy, just good planning for a popular event. We are pleased that the court found no evidence to support plaintiff’s claims.”
A spokesman for Will Walters said, “We disagree with the judge’s decision. Clearly Mr. Walters civil rights were violated. He is considering his next legal course of action.”
Walters’ attorney Chris Morris, of Aguirre, Morris & Severson said, “Whether we won or lost at the trial court, we knew this case would eventually have to be determined by the 9th Circuit. Now, that court will decide if it’s OK for the police to allow women to wear g-strings at OTL while preventing gay men from wearing a gladiator kilt during Pride.”
put some clothes on man….