COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — Things aren't looking good for a barefoot bookworm.

Robert Neinast has sued the Columbus Metropolitan Library, saying that the ban on going barefoot there blocks a healthy lifestyle and his First Amendment rights.

During a hearing Friday in U.S. District Court, Judge Algenon Marbley told Neinast, a software writer from nearby Pickerington, that he wasn't inclined to let the case go to trial.

The library's attorney, Philomena Dane, told the judge that the library has the policy to protect patrons' safety and avoid injury lawsuits.

Dane said Saturday that Neinast failed to make the case that going barefoot is a form of expression.

"One doesn't know what the message is," she said.

Neinast wore a dark suit and black shoes in court.

"As I said in my affidavit, I wear shoes on formal occasions, and it doesn't get much more formal than this," he said after the hearing.