An adult toy seller and distributor who sued to throw out Alabama's ban on selling adult sex toys says she appreciates the firm and widespread support she's had from within the adult entertainment world, while pushing for a new version of the law while awaiting an appeal ruling of a 1999 federal court judgment in her favor.
"All too often, I hear of the excessive greed, backbiting, and manipulative activities of industry giants," said Sherri Williams to AVN On The Net, "yet to have received such support and generosity for this cause has truly restored my faith in the industry."
Williams, proprietor of "Pleasures" in Huntsville, sued to stop the Alabama law a few years ago and brought it to federal court in 1998, winning a ruling in her favor the following year. The state appealed that ruling to the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals, which heard the case April 14 - just before the U.S. Supreme Court handed down its Erie v. PAPs ruling "which had a perceived negative impact on the outcome of our trial," Williams said.
She then hired a lobbyist to push "corrective legislation" to Alabama state lawmakers. That's where the adult industry came into play, because the lobbyist's fee impacted her financial position substantially, she said. That's when she went to work in earnest. First, she got the Alabama chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union to set up a special fund for contributions, then spread the world at a Las Vegas convention, "distribut(ing) flyers to each of the adult toy booths."
It didn't take long for her to get results, either, she said, from both various adult businesses and from the Free Speech Coalition, whose chairman, Bill Lyons, raised the Williams case at a board meeting. The result: Williams was able to raise enough money to offset the lobbyist's fee.
In a thank-you letter she has sent to her adult industry supporters, Williams said the "largest challenge" to her lower court victory would be the 11th Circuit Court having to strike down the entire Alabama law, not just the portion related to sex toys. "You see, the Alabama legislature neglected to add a severability clause to that particular law before passing it," she said. "(We) are concerned that the court may hesitate to throw out the entire law, which in turn would jeopardize our appeals victory."
That was what prompted her to hire a lobbyist to push the corrective measure, which would strike out those parts specifically outlawing adult toy sales. "Fortunately, it appears that the Court may be leaning in our favor as we had hoped," she said. "We do not anticipate any opposition to the bill from the state attorney general. The revised law is making its way through the various committees in both the Senate and the House and is positioned favorably for a vote."
When that vote might come, she didn't say.
"I fear that most people believed this issue... died when we won the case in 1999, but the threat still lingers," she said.
