Before the court examines the merits of First Amendment claim, will the court consider whether this claim is ripe?

Before the court examines the merits of plaintiffs' First Amendment claim, the court will consider whether this claim is ripe. "Ripeness is peculiarly a question of timing, designed to prevent the courts, through avoidance of premature adjudication, from entangling themselves in abstract disagreements." Thomas v. Anchorage Equal Rights Comm'n, 220 F.3d 1134, 1138 (9th Cir. 2000) (citations and internal punctuation omitted). Courts must examine whether a case is ripe because their role "is neither to issue advisory opinions nor to declare rights in hypothetical cases, but to adjudicate live cases or controversies consistent with the powers granted the judiciary in Article III of the Constitution." Id.