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Tuesday, September 07, 2004
Indiana Courts - Another adult business case before Judge Barker
This August 30th ILB entry, titled "Federal court upholds Indianapolis' ordinance re adult businesses," reported that U.S. District Judge Sarah Evans Barker had upheld provisions of an Indianapolis adult business ordinance. [Unfortunately the ruling has not be posted on the SD Ind. website.]
Today the Louisville Courier-Journal reports on a similar case before Judge Barker, this one involving a New Albany adult video store. Some quotes:
[Steve Mason, a lawyer for New Albany DVD] said recent decisions in similar First Amendment cases make it clear that New Albany must cite specific evidence showing New Albany DVD would harm the community.Because the city's evidence, so far, has been studies and anecdotes from other cities, often involving other types of adult entertainment, Mason said he believes his client will win.
[Shane Gibson, the city attorney] agreed the battle will be largely over the way New Albany DVD will affect the neighborhood near Main and West Sixth Street.
He questioned the statistics in Linz's report and said he's confident an expert for the city, a criminologist who has studied the issue, can explain the impact of adult businesses on other communities and say why it is relevant to New Albany's case. "We feel there is some law on our side," Gibson said.
Alexander Tanford, a law professor at Indiana University in Bloomington, said he believes evidence about the harmful effects of adult businesses on other communities is relevant to New Albany.
Even so, he said, "it seems like the store owner has a pretty good chance" because the 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, which handles appeals from Indiana, generally takes a strong position in support of First Amendment rights.
Posted by Marcia Oddi on September 7, 2004 08:43 AM
Posted to Indiana Courts