On December 13, 2025, David Hoffman and friends, compelled by their Christian beliefs, visited the Winterhaven Festival of Lights – an annual festival held in the Winterhaven neighborhood in Tucson – to share their faith with those willing to listen or take their written materials. The festival is open to the public, free of charge, and does not require tickets for entry. Attendees are invited to walk through the public ways that wind through the neighborhood to take in and enjoy light displays, food, and drink supplied by local vendors.
Yet, on the first night of the festival, City police officers approached Hoffman’s group and warned them to halt their expression, citing the festival’s solicitation policy as basis. This policy prohibits all “political, religious, or commercial materials or messaging. The City relegated Hoffman and his group’s religious messaging to the confines of a barricaded zone set up outside of the Festival footprint.
Far from festivalgoers, the speech zone separates Hoffman and friends from their desired audience and devastates their intended message. In response to this religious discrimination, First Liberty sent a demand letter in December 2025.
Then in October 2026, First Liberty Institute and the law firms Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LLP and Holtzman Vogel PLLC filed a complaint and motion for preliminary injunction against the City of Tucson, AZ.
“Censoring a Christian message during a public Christmas event is malicious, unconstitutional, and absurd,” stated Nate Kellum, Senior Counsel at First Liberty Institute. “A public street festival is just that – a public space where citizens can visit, walk around, and converse with each other about different ideas. The government cannot ban only religious messages.”
Matt Scorcio, associate attorney at Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LLP said, “Free speech can’t be limited to remote, isolated areas where no one can hear or see a message. If the government cancels public speech, as in the case of our client, it violates the Constitution and undermines the identity of our nation.”
In the complaint attorneys state, “Federal and Arizona law prohibit cities from outlawing speech in public forums—particularly religious speech. The Court should grant declaratory and injunctive relief confirming that Hoffman can speak and hand out leaflets on public streets and rights of way during this year’s festival and all future festivals.”
News Release
For Immediate Release: 10.8.26
Contact: Natalie Konstans, media@firstliberty.org
Direct: 972-941-4453
Arizona Resident Banned from Holiday Festival Files Federal Lawsuit, Asks for Injunction to Prevent Further Discrimination
Police threatened arrest and banished resident to barricaded zone because of religious speech.
Tucson, AZ—First Liberty Institute and the law firms Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LLP and Holtzman Vogel PLLC filed a complaint and motion for preliminary injunction against the City of Tucson, AZ on behalf of David Hoffman, a local resident who was threatened with arrest and forced into a confined, remote zone for sharing his faith at the Winterhaven Festival of Lights.
You can read the complaint here.
“Censoring a Christian message during a public Christmas event is malicious, unconstitutional, and absurd,” stated Nate Kellum, Senior Counsel at First Liberty Institute. “A public street festival is just that – a public space where citizens can visit, walk around, and converse with each other about different ideas. The government cannot ban only religious messages.”
Matt Scorcio, associate attorney at Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LLP said, “Free speech can’t be limited to remote, isolated areas where no one can hear or see a message. If the government cancels public speech, as in the case of our client, it violates the Constitution and undermines the identity of our nation.”
In December 2025, David Hoffman and friends visited the Winterhaven neighborhood in Tucson, Arizona to share their faith with attendees at the Winterhaven Festival of Lights. They sought to express their Christian beliefs to those willing to listen or take their written materials. But police officers advised that their activity violated the festival’s solicitation policy which explicitly banned religious speech in the area. Hoffman and his group were told they must engage in their religious messaging within the confines of a barricaded zone, titled “Designated Space for Peaceful Messaging and Literature Distribution,” set up outside of the festival footprint near Fort Lowell Road. First Liberty sent a demand letter in December 2025 alerting the city to its unconstitutional actions, but received no response.
In the complaint attorneys state, “Federal and Arizona law prohibit cities from outlawing speech in public forums—particularly religious speech. The Court should grant declaratory and injunctive relief confirming that Hoffman can speak and hand out leaflets on public streets and rights of way during this year’s festival and all future festivals.”
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About First Liberty Institute
First Liberty Institute is a non-profit public interest law firm and the largest legal organization in the nation dedicated exclusively to defending religious freedom for all Americans.
To arrange an interview, contact Natalie Konstans at media@firstliberty.org or by calling 972-941-4453.
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