NEW ORLEANS - The Fifth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has sided with the city of Houston in its ongoing effort to restrict adult businesses, upholding a law that would force over 100 clubs and stores to close.
Houston has spent over $1 million defending its adult businesses ordinance against legal challenges over the last decade. KHOU-TV called the federal appeals ruling “a major victory for the city.”
In May, City Attorney Arturo Michel's attempted to order over 100 adult businesses to shut down or face civil and criminal penalties in warning letters sent via certified mail.
In the letters, the city notified owners of adult bookstores, cabarets and other sexually-oriented businesses that they are operating in violation of the adult ordinance, which prohibits such establishments from locating within 1,500 feet of churches, schools, parks and other designated areas of the city.
Two weeks later, the Fifth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals granted the motion for stay of enforcement of the city's anti-adult ordinance. The stay prevented Houston from delivering on promises to send the violation letters to various adult businesses, which would have the effect of forcing them either to move to different locations or to close altogether.
In a turnaround, Monday’s ruling affirmed the 1,500 foot restrictions. According to the KHOU report, the court also agreed that the city demonstrated enough alternative sites for adult businesses.
