Judge Upholds Ban From Air Show 

Aviation magazine publisher James
Campbell will not be allowed at the Sun 'n
Fun event. 

Friday, April 9, 1999

By SUSAN BARBOSA
The Ledger 


TAMPA -- The publisher of an aviation magazine lost
his battle in federal court Thursday to stop Sun 'n Fun
Fly-In officials from banning him from the weeklong
event that begins Sunday.

James Campbell of Winter Haven sued after Sun 'n Fun
officials said he would be arrested for trespassing if he
attends the air show at Lakeland Linder Regional
Airport as he has done for 10 years. Campbell argued
that as a journalist he has a right to attend the show that
is held partially on land leased to Sun 'n Fun by the city
of Lakeland.

But U.S. District Judge Richard A. Lazzara ruled that
Sun 'n Fun, as a private organization, has a right to ban
anyone it wants.

"The undisputed evidence is that Sun 'n Fun has a lease
with the city of Lakeland that gives them the sole
discretion over who can come and who can go,"
Lazzara concluded after a three-hour hearing. "Putting
on an air show is not a function of government."

Campbell claims Fly-In officials want to ban him
because his magazine, US Aviator, has published
articles critical of safety issues at the Fly-In and of some
of the products promoted by manufacturers at the
event.

Campbell's attorney, Daniel Moody of Bartow, told
Lazzara the Fly-In, one of the world's biggest
experimental aircraft shows, is open to the public, is
held at a public facility and Campbell has a
constitutional right to participate.

"A lot of people don't like Jim Campbell. He would say
that is his job," Moody said. "But should that infringe on
his right to write about the safety concerns of these
(airplane) kits and how people can be injured or
killed?"

"He has a valid reason to be there -- to save lives,"
Moody said. "And it is contrary to the U.S. and state
constitutions to ban him."

The Fly-In's attorney, John Wendel of Lakeland, said
the ban is a response to Campbell's disruptive behavior
and does not involve First Amendment issues. "The
Constitution does not require a private,
non-governmental entity to admit him," Wendel told
Lazzara.

Campbell, or anyone else, can be banned from a
courthouse, stadium, airport or other public facility,
Wendell said, and Sun 'n Fun is no different. "Fly-In
officials have the right to keep people acting
inappropriately out of the Sun 'n Fun."

William A. Eickhoff of St. Petersburg, president of Sun
'n Fun, told the judge Campbell has been ejected from
the Fly-In three times since 1994 because of his
"escalating verbal and physical behavior."

"The concerns I have are, is he carrying a gun, as I
heard he was, and is he going to escalate his actions to
the point where others are endangered?" Eickhoff told
Lazzara.

Campbell testified that he has never taken a gun to the
Fly-In.

Moody said he and Campbell are considering whether
to appeal Lazzara's ruling.

"It appears a private organization like Sun 'n Fun has
the right to exclude members of the press for any
cause," Moody said. "This case never got to the true
merits of whether they had cause to eject Jim
Campbell."

Fly-In officials banned Campbell but not employees of
his magazine.

Wendel said another journalist from the magazine could
receive credentials to cover the event.

Campbell said there is not another staffer at the
magazine who can contract with advertisers or do the
test flying that he does. The magazine comes out every
two months and has about 30,000 subscribers.

"I frankly think this will put us out of business,"
Campbell said. "The people who have come to depend
on us for consumer investigations are the real losers
here."

The Fly-In owns about 60 acres adjacent to the city
airport and leases about 27 more acres from the city for
about $300,000 a year. Fly-In officials pay about
$30,000 a year to reimburse the city for police and fire
protection.

Eickhoff said the Sun 'n Fun controls security at the
Fly-In and no city or state funds are contributed to the
event.

Campbell and Moody had filed a request in Circuit
Court last week challenging the ban. Sun n' Fun's
attorney asked Monday that the case be moved to
federal court because of Campbell's claim that
constitutional issues of freedom of the press were
involved.

After Lazzara's ruling, Wendel said he and Fly-In
officials regret that they have been unable to resolve
their differences with Campbell.