A street evangelist from Arizona is taking legal action against the city of Tucson over an event policy that restricts religious speech, following an encounter with police who threatened to arrest him for discussing Jesus during a holiday festival.
David Hoffman, who has been spreading the gospel at public gatherings for more than ten years, sees these events as vital for his Christian outreach. “We aim to share the gospel with people who wouldn’t typically step foot in a church. We go where there isn’t already a Christian presence and engage in conversations,” he explained.
For almost a decade, Hoffman participated in Tucson’s Winterhaven Festival of Lights, a popular holiday attraction drawing thousands each year. However, during the December 2025 festival, he claims police stopped him from sharing his faith and warned him about new event regulations that could result in criminal trespassing charges.
As outlined in a federal lawsuit supported by First Liberty Institute, Tucson implemented an event solicitation policy the previous year that forbids “religious, political, or issue-based leafleting,” clearly communicated via signage at entry points, warning of possible removal and trespassing charges enforced by local police.
When Hoffman tried to engage with attendees, officers intervened, telling him he couldn’t preach within the event. He asked whether his volume was an issue, but the officers indicated that merely sending his message was a violation of their rules.
One officer even claimed that asking someone if they wanted to talk about Jesus constituted “sermonizing,” which was discouraged under the policy.
The complaint states that event organizers and police cited city policy due to previous complaints and that, after several warnings, four officers eventually escorted Hoffman out of the festival, implying he could preach only in a designated “free expression zone” outside the event.
The lawsuit asserts that the restricted zone was adjacent to a busy street, making it challenging for him to engage in conversations with passersby, especially when commercial vendors and entertainers were allowed throughout the festival.
In December 2025, First Liberty sent a letter to the city on Hoffman’s behalf, declaring that the policy was unconstitutional, yet they claim to have received no answer. A complaint filed this week states that the policy infringes on Hoffman’s First Amendment rights regarding free speech and religion, as well as the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment and the Arizona Constitution.
The complaint requests immediate and long-term injunctions to allow Hoffman to preach during this year’s festival, alongside a declaration that the policy is unconstitutional.
“Public streets and sidewalks, along with parks, carry strong constitutional protections,” Bell remarked. He further pointed out that the city’s regulations targeted religious viewpoints specifically, allowing discussions about sports or the weather but not about faith.
Nate Kellum, a senior counsel at First Liberty, expressed that “censoring a Christian message during a public Christmas event is not only unjust and unconstitutional, it’s ridiculous.” He emphasized that a public festival should serve as a space for open dialogue and exchange of ideas, not one where only religious messages are stifled.
The lawsuit names the city of Tucson and two officers, Matt Alexander and William Leonard, as defendants. Tucson city officials have not commented on the ongoing litigation, and the Tucson police department has not yet responded to requests for comments.
