People v. Beaulieu Realtors, Inc.

Defendant Beaulieu Realtors, Inc. was charged in two counts with violating “An Act to prohibit the solicitation or inducement of sale or purchase of real estate ***.” (Ill. Rev. Stat. 1983, ch. 38, par. 70—51 et seq.). Following a bench trial, Beaulieu Realtors, Inc. was convicted and fined $1,000 on each count. It appeals.

In 1983, the Northwest Neighborhood Federation, a Chicago community group, conducted an antisolicitation of real estate drive. Staff members of the federation, along with community volunteers, collected homeowners’ signatures on a document entitled, “Notice Not to Solicit.”…