MANDAN, N.D. (KFGO) – The owners of a Mandan, N.D. bar have filed a federal lawsuit against the city over demands that they paint over a western-themed mural. The city ordered The Lonesome Dove to remove the mural because the business doesn’t have a permit.
“The First Amendment doesn’t let the city decide what speech is okay” according to Erica Smith, an attorney with the “Institute for Justice” in Arlington, Va. Smith says the lawsuit is designed to bring Mandan’s sign code into “constitutional compliance.”
In March, the Mandan City Commission ordered the Lonesome Dove to remove the mural. The bar first received a citation for the mural in October.
“They have designed their sign code to control the content of signs and murals. That is unconstitutional” according to Smith. “That is discriminating against commercial speech and they can’t do that.”
The lawsuit is asking for $1.00 in symbolic damages.
“It’s about the principle” Smith said. “I would think the city has better things to do with its time than try to crush small businesses for trying to beautify the city with their murals.”