Mirage Casino

Although I conclude that the sidewalks in question are public forums to which the full protections of the First Amendment apply, commercial speech promoting illegal activity enjoys no such protection. [FN11] Uncontradicted evidence in the record establishes that the solicitations distributed by S.O.C. and Hillsboro advertise the services of erotic performers. The advertisements often leave little doubt that physical sexual activity is part of the services offered. Additionally, Las Vegas police officers testified at the hearing below that eighty to ninety-five percent of transactions made through these solicitations involve actual sexual activity. Although some counties and cities in Nevada permit prostitution, Las Vegas does not. Therefore, because prostitution is an unlawful activity in Las Vegas, I believe that the distribution of the advertisements may not fall within the scope of First Amendment protection.

FN11. See Princess Sea Indus. v. State of Nev., 97 Nev. 534, 537, 635 P.2d 281, 283 (1981) (holding that NRS 201.440, which prohibits advertisements for prostitution in counties and cities where prostitution is illegal, does not violate the First Amendment because commercial speech for an illegal activity can be severely regulated); see also Pittsburgh Press Co. v. Pittsburgh Commission on Human Relations, 413 U.S. 376, 388- 89, 93 S.Ct. 2553, 37 L.Ed.2d 669 (1973) ("Any First Amendment interest which might be served by advertising an ordinary commercial proposal ... is altogether absent when the commercial activity itself is illegal.").