CITY OF DALLAS v. STANGLIN

Legal Principle at Issue

Does a city ordinance restricting admission to "Class E" public dance halls to teenagers between the ages of 14 and 18 violate the First Amendment right to freedom of association or the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment?

Action

Reversed and remanded. Petitioning party received a favorable disposition.

Facts/Syllabus

For the express purpose of providing a place where teenagers can socialize with each other but not be subject to the potentially detrimental influences of older teenagers and adults, a Dallas ordinance authorizes the licensing of "Class E" dancehalls, restricting admission thereto to persons between the ages of 14 and 18 and limiting their hours of operation. 

Respondent, whose rollerskating rink and Class E dancehall share a divided floor space, filed suit in state court to enjoin the ordinance's age and hour restrictions, contending that they violated the First Amendment and the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment. The trial court upheld the ordinance, but the Texas Court of Appeals struck down the ordinance's age restriction, holding that it violated the First Amendment associational rights of minors.