An Arizona state law limiting the operating hours of adult entertainment businesses doesn’t violate First Amendment rights according a decision by the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals yesterday.
Agreeing with the Arizona Court of Appeals, the federal appeals court agreed that a state law requiring sexually oriented businesses to close between 1 and 8 a.m. Mondays through Saturdays and 1 a.m. and noon Sundays does not violate First Amendment rights of free speech.
"The State may choose to treat adult businesses differently from other businesses so long as it does so for the right reasons, and it has done that here," Judge Diarmuid F. O'Scannlain wrote. "It need do no more."
The plaintiffs L.J. Concepts Inc. and the Center for Fair Public Policy had argued that adult entertainment businesses were being unfairly targeted. That argument was dismissed by O'Scannlain, who noted in a footnote examples of other businesses that operated with limited hours under law, such as a city ordinance limiting pawnshop hours and a state law that bans liquor sales during certain hours.
In November, the Arizona Court of Appeals ruled that the law applied to live entertainment but not printed materials, film and video. So establishments may stay open late as long as they don’t offer nude dancing after hours. The November decision, which is not affected by yesterday’s decision, was the result of a legal battle by the Empress Adult Book & Video Store and Theater in Tucson. Prior to the passing on the 1998 law restricting hours, Empress had previously opened at 4 a.m. with live nude dancers.
