A federal judge has thrown out charges faced by ten strippers and their three bosses, saying that nude dancing is protected under the United States Constitution.
Nudity and conspiracy charges came out of an arrest sweep last May at the Showcase Theater here. But Judge Thurman Rhodes's ruling said Prince George County's ban on nude dancing imposed "a chilling effect" on protected free expression.
State's Attorney Jack B. Johnson called the ruling a "Valentine's Day massacre" and swore to appeal the ruling. But defense attorneys argued the strippers were only exercising First Amendment rights.
They got some expert testimony on their behalf from University of Maryland arts professor Judith Lynne Hanna. "Nudity as an element of artistic expression is, and should be, protected expression under the First Amendment," she told the Washington Times.
Rhodes ruled that the county law blocking public nudity didn't fit a "wholly enclosed structure" like the Showcase.
