Source: s3://data.kl3m.ai/documents/govinfo/USCOURTS/USCOURTS-ca5-03-30523/USCOURTS-ca5-03-30523-1/pdf.json

Nature of Suit Code: 950
Nature of Suit: Contitutionality of State Statutes
Cause of Action: 

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United States Court of Appeals

Fifth Circuit

FILED

May 3, 2006

Charles R. Fulbruge III

Clerk

UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS

FOR THE FIFTH CIRCUIT

No. 03-30523

PELTS & SKINS, LLC

Plaintiff - Appellee,

v.

WILLIAM DWIGHT LANDRENEAU, Secretary for the Department of 

Wildlife and Fisheries,

Defendant - Appellant.

Appeal from the United States District Court

for the Middle District of Louisiana

ON REMAND FROM THE SUPREME COURT OF THE UNITED STATES

Before KING, BENAVIDES, and CLEMENT, Circuit Judges.

BENAVIDES, CIRCUIT JUDGE:

Our previous opinion in this case held that Louisiana’s

alligator marketing program created an unconstitutional compelled

subsidy for private speech. Since then, the United States Supreme

Court issued an opinion clarifying when marketing programs like the

one at issue are government speech exempt from First Amendment

scrutiny. See Johanns v. Livestock Mktg., Assoc., 544 U.S. 550,

__; 125 S. Ct. 2055, 2063 (2005). Johanns held that the key

 Case: 03-30523 Document: 0051593200 Page: 1 Date Filed: 05/03/2006
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inquiry is the “degree of governmental control over the message.”

Id. Speech constitutes government speech when it is “effectively

controlled” by the government. Id. at 2062. 

Neither this Court, the district court, nor the parties had

the benefit of this now-governing standard. At this time, we

cannot apply the new standard, given that the record does not

contain sufficient evidence of control or lack thereof.

Accordingly, we VACATE and REMAND for the district court to allow

the parties to develop and present evidence with respect to the new

standard and to allow the district court to assess in the first

instance the extent of governmental control over the speech at

issue. 

 Case: 03-30523 Document: 0051593200 Page: 2 Date Filed: 05/03/2006