Arizona man threatened with arrest after sharing Christian beliefs at Christmas festival: attorneys

December 23, 2025

First Liberty Institute says that Tucson officials infringed on an Arizona man’s right to religious expression when they allegedly threatened him with arrest after he and his friends attempted to share their Christian beliefs during a Christmas festival.

The Christian Post reports that First Liberty Institute sent a letter to the City of Tucson last week, accusing officials there of violating David Hoffman’s religious speech at the annual Winterhaven Festival of Lights.

Nate Kellum, senior counsel at First Liberty Institute (FLI), said in a statement shared with the Christian Post, “The City of Tucson is unlawfully suppressing Mr. Hoffman’s speech by removing his religious expression from public property and separating his speech from fellow attendees by placing a barricade between them.”

Kellum added, “The city isolates religious speech for censorship. It’s unconstitutional. Like any other kind of speech, religious speech is protected under the First Amendment.”

According to FLI, Hoffman and his friends visited the annual festival on Dec. 13, and were visiting with other attendees as they walked through the event which is free and open to the public.

According to the Christian Post, Hoffman and his group were approached by City police officers who threatened them with arrest for trespass for allegedly violating the city’s policy on solicitation.

Hoffman and his friends were told they would have to move their activities to an area outside of the festival’s footprint known as the “Designated Space for Peaceful Messaging and Literature Distribution.”

In it’s letter to the City of Tucson, FLI said “evangelistic speech, literature distribution and oral expression” are protected under the First Amendment, and that the presence of a festival doesn’t alter the streets’ status as “traditional public fora.” 

Photo: top, Credit: Valentin Karisch