2 days ago
City blocked from applying vendor laws to beachside yoga classes
SAN DIEGO (FOX 5/KUSI) — A preliminary injunction was issued Wednesday by a federal appeals court in a lawsuit filed by two yoga instructors over the city of San Diego's crackdown on donation-based yoga classes at public parks and beaches under its vendor laws.
The decision by the U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, which reverses a lower court's partial dismissal of the case, blocks the city from enforcing the vendor law as it pertains to these longstanding classes while the case continues litigation.
The ruling is a notable victory for the instructors, Steve Hubbard — also known as 'NamaSteve' — and Amy Baack, who first sued the city in federal court last year, asserting the application of the vendor law to their classes infringed on their First Amendment right to free speech.
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A district court judge had previously rebuffed this part of their claim, arguing the law does not regulate what they said, rather their conduct.
In its opinion, a three-judge panel at the court of appeals disagreed with the lower court's conclusion, arguing that the lecturing about yoga philosophy and spirituality is indivisible from the exercise aspects of the practice.
'A person who teaches yoga is communicating and disseminating information about this philosophy and practice through speech and expressive movements,' Judge Holly Thomas wrote for the panel in its opinion. 'Like vocational training classes, Hubbard's and Baack's classes aim to impart a specific skill and communicate advice derived from specialized knowledge.'
The opinion adds the city's ordinance is clearly content-based in the way it was written, expressly allowing the teaching of some subjects like tai chi and Shakespeare's plays at shoreline parks and beaches but not others.
Given this interdependence, San Diego would have to have a compelling public interest to place narrow restrictions on activities like yoga in outdoor spaces — something the appeals court judges did not appear convinced the city had demonstrated at this point in the case.
These factors, Thomas said, makes Hubbard and Baack's constitutional challenge likely to prevail on the merits. Now, the case has been remanded back to the district court judge for further litigation.
In a statement, a spokesperson for the city attorney's office said they were 'evaluating the decision and potential next steps.' FOX 5/KUSI has also reached out to the Parks and Recreation Department for comment on the injunction and is awaiting response.
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The lawsuit is one of two the yoga instructors have filed since San Diego park rangers began ramping up enforcement of beachside yoga last year. Hubbard and Baack also filed a lawsuit in state court on similar grounds after their federal claim was partially dismissed.
The crackdown at the center of the instructors' lawsuits came after the city council voted to expand existing laws requiring permits for commercial vendors to use public spaces to encompass activities like the classes and luxury picnics.
Hubbard and Baack received a number of citations from park rangers for violating this law as the city ratcheted up enforcement. One of these citations, Hubbard alleges, was given to him for teaching a class via YouTube from his backyard to people who were doing the exercises at a beach.
As the case continues, Hubbard says he plans to resume teaching beachside yoga classes as early as Thursday.
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