Packers fan's lawsuit against Chicago Bears gets go-ahead from court

GREEN BAY – Russell Beckman is a Green Bay Packers fan from way back. He's a Chicago Bears season ticket holder, too.

Oil and water.

Beckman, a Green Bay School District teacher, sued the Bears in U.S. District Court in Chicago because they wouldn't let him on the sidelines wearing Packers gear during a promotional event with other season ticket holders before a game in 2016. The lawsuit, which a federal judge decided can proceed, might be an annoyance to the Bears, but Beckman said it could have wider-ranging implications.

First, the background. Beckman lived in southern Wisconsin until August 2017, when he moved to Green Bay. He acquired Packers season tickets in the 1980s, and added Bears season tickets in 2003 because he loves the Packers-Bears rivalry.

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"I thought that way I'd always have tickets and be able to make a little money selling the other ones," he said.

As a Bears season ticket holder and personal seat license owner, Beckman earns points in a season tickets rewards program that allows him to take advantage of various programs, including being on the apron around the field during pregame warmups.

Beckman has attended many games at Soldier Field and, indeed, was allowed on the apron before other games. But during the Packers-Bears game on Dec. 18, 2016, he was denied access. There were other Packers fans at field level, although they were guests of the Packers or involved in other programs.

The Bears did make it clear beforehand that opposing team gear would not be permitted as part of the program.

"I have this privilege as a season ticket holder," he said. "It's very, very cool, but it's an experience that I pay for. It ticked me off on a personal level."

He is not a provocateur. He understands there is a time and place for everything, and a Packers-Bears game is the time and place to sport team colors.

"It was not a private event at Halas Hall. I never wear Packers apparel there," he said. "This was a Bears-Packers game."

Halas Hall is the Bears headquarters in Lake Forest, Ill.

Beckman's argument is that because the Bears lease Soldier Field from the Chicago Park District and their finances and operations intersect with the park district to such a degree that it makes the Bears a state actor. In other words, what happens at Soldier Field is a public, not private activity, as it might be where a team owns its stadium outright. He argues the Bears violated his First and 14th Amendment rights.

The First Amendment covers freedom of speech and the 14th Amendment requires equal protection of the laws.

The Bears aren't the only team that prohibits opposing-team apparel in certain parts of their publicly financed stadiums, Beckman said.

"When that happens in publicly financed sports venues, it's wrong," he said. "I am going to soldier ahead and I will continue until hopefully I have a federal court ruling that will allow me to do this. It will establish a precedent in an area of unsettled law."

A 1977 case built on a similar argument, Ludtke vs. Kuhn, resulted in equal access to professional sports locker rooms by female reporters.

Beckman would like to find an ambitious lawyer attracted by the scope of the case.

"I am representing myself for now," Beckman said. "I can do an adequate job of representing myself. I do have many intellectual resources at my disposal, but this is an issue I'm not willing to spend $10,000 on."

In fact, he would settle out of court if the Bears were willing. He said they are not.

"I tried to work with them. They won't have any legitimate talks to settle," he said."I didn't seek out confrontation, they did."

There's also the matter of consistency on the part of the Bears. Beckman appeared on the field on Sept. 10, 2017, wearing a Falcons jersey as a kind of test. No one chased him away.

The original lawsuit included the National Football League and an attempt at a class action, which U.S. District Judge Joan B. Gottschall tossed out in a March 30 ruling. But she said Beckman's claim against the Bears could go ahead. A status conference is scheduled for May 9.

"I'm sure the judge will try to get us to settle, which is fine. I'm all for it," he said.

For his part, he'd be happy to be allowed on the field and get his court costs back; about $800.

The Green Bay Packers could conceivably fall into the same category as the Bears. The team leases Lambeau Field from the Green Bay/Brown County Professional Football Stadium District and the city of Green Bay. Also, the Packers receive financial contributions from the stadium district to compensate them for some maintenance costs.