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Please, no pictures! Las Vegas bans stopping, standing on pedestrian bridges

By Chris Williams
Published  January 17, 2024 3:04pm EST
Entertainment
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LAS VEGAS - The Las Vegas Strip is one of the world's most recognizable sights, but a new law may make it harder to capture the moment.

Clark County commissioners unanimously passed an ordinance this month banning people from "stopping, standing or engaging in an activity that causes another person to stop" on Strip pedestrian bridges. 

The measure also includes up to 20 feet surrounding connected stairs, elevators and escalators.

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People who don't follow the ordinance could face up to six months in jail or a $1,000 fine.

The ban does not apply to people standing or stopping to wait for an elevator, stairway or escalator.

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Clark County said in a statement that its "pedestrian flow zone ordinance" isn't meant to target street performers or people who stop to take pictures, but rather to increase public safety by ensuring a continuous flow of pedestrian traffic across the bridges.

The measure "will help to ensure our world-class tourism destination remains a safe place for people to visit and transverse," the statement said.

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But opponents say that the ban violates rights protected by the First Amendment.

"That might mean the right to protest. That might mean someone who’s sharing expressions of their faith. That might mean a street performer," Athar Haseebullah, executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union of Nevada, said. Those rights, he said, are "protected at their highest level" in public spaces, including pedestrian bridges.

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The county said it planned to install signs on the Strip identifying locations where stopping or standing is prohibited.

The Associated Press contributed to this report. This story was reported from Los Angeles.