The Tampa Sports Authority is the lawsuit's target, but the security measure was mandated by pro football.
By BILL VARIAN, Times Staff Writer
Published October 18, 2005
TAMPA - The Tampa Sports Authority will fight a lawsuit filed last week challenging the legality of fan pat-downs at Raymond James Stadium, but it wants the National Football League to pay for its lawyers.
Sports Authority members voted unanimously Monday to oppose Hillsborough County resident Gordon Johnston's lawsuit when it goes to court Wednesday for an emergency hearing. But some board members expressed frustration that taxpayers will have to pay to defend a security measure that the NFL mandated.
They were already frustrated that the Tampa Bay Buccaneers have refused to pay the added cost of security to carry out the pat-downs.
"My main concern ... is that taxpayers pick up the tab," said board member Mark Proctor.
Attorneys for the Sports Authority presented board members with an option Monday that they simply not put up a defense of the pat-down policy. With no defense, a judge would likely side with Johnston, who claims the pat-downs violate state and U.S. constitutional protections against unreasonable government searches.
More likely, such a move would have forced the league to bear the brunt of the defense in what is believed to be the first legal challenge of the practice. The outcome of the case could affect how other cities deal with the issue.
Hillsborough Commissioner Jim Norman, who sits on the Sports Authority, cautioned board members against taking a position that would be seen as antagonistic to the NFL. Noting that Tampa will host the 2009 Super Bowl, he urged a more conciliatory approach.
"There is a bigger picture here than just the pat-downs," Norman said. "We have a long-term opportunity in this community with the NFL."
At his request, board members instead voted to ask the NFL and the Buccaneers to join the lawsuit and at least help pay for the cost of defending the pat-downs. That request will be made Friday, when Sports Authority officials were already planning to meet with Buccaneers representatives in an attempt to convince the team to pay for the pat-downs.
An attempt to reach NFL spokesman Greg Aiello was unsuccessful late Monday, but Sports Authority officials said league officials have said they won't pay for the Sports Authority's defense. Instead, they will provide legal assistance and research, said Sports Authority general counsel John Van Voris.
The National Football League ordered the security pat-downs at the start of this season at all of the stadiums where each of its 32 teams play. The Sports Authority agreed to implement the edict, with some board members expressing reluctance, especially after the Buccaneers refused to pay for it.
The Sports Authority initially estimated the cost at about $9,500 a game, though it has proven to be about $7,500 on average. That cost falls to taxpayers.
Attorneys for the Sports Authority estimate it will cost $10,000 to $15,000 for their initial defense against the lawsuit - an expense that will also fall to taxpayers.
Johnston, 60, a high school civics teacher, filed his lawsuit against the Sports Authority in Hillsborough Circuit Court on Thursday. Backed by attorneys with the American Civil Liberties Union, Johnston said the pat-downs represent an unreasonable search by the government on its citizens.
As a season ticket holder, Johnston wasn't informed about the policy, which was enacted after he paid for his tickets, a deposit to secure them and his parking pass. He said team representatives said they would not give refunds to people who object to pat-downs.
His attorneys argue that even the NFL has acknowledged it is not aware of unusual security threats at its stadiums, calling into question the need for pat-downs. Neither the NFL nor the Buccaneers is named in the lawsuit.
Johnston's attorneys have said they directed the suit at the Sports Authority, since it is a government agency and is the one conducting and paying for the pat-downs. On Wednesday, they will ask a judge to grant a preliminary injunction halting the pat-downs until the case can be fully heard.
One Sports Authority member, land-use attorney Vincent Marchetti, asked the board to go one step further in its defense Monday to test Johnston's resolve. At his urging, the board voted 9-2 to immediately file a motion to dismiss the lawsuit should Johnston not prevail Wednesday, which will effectively cost him, or the ACLU, more money to go forward.
Proctor and board chairman Patrick Manteiga cast the dissenting votes.
