Anaheim officials on Tuesday dropped prostitution charges against seven lap dancers whose 2-year-old case briefly put the city in the spotlight in the ongoing legal battle between adult entertainment businesses and communities seeking to restrict them. The dancers were arrested in after undercover police officers videotaped them performing dances for customers of the Sahara Theater, a strip club.
They were convicted on charges of prostitution and of violating a city ordinance that bans touching between exotic dancers and their customers. State law does not require that sexual intercourse occur for prostitution charges to be filed. But the 4th District Court of Appeal reversed the convictions in September, saying the jury in the case was wrongly instructed not to consider lap dancing a form of artistic expression.
Last month, the state Supreme Court declined to hear the case, meaning the women could be retried only on the prostitution charges. Jack L. White said. Cities across the nation have long sought to restrict and even ban adult entertainment businesses. They have met with mixed results in the courts, which have ruled that such establishments are protected by the 1st Amendment but are nonetheless subject to reasonable regulations.
Anaheim, home to five nude cabarets and topless bars, has been one of the more aggressive regulators in the state. In another case last year, the same appellate court ruled that the city unfairly denied a permit to another adult theater operator. The most important California stories and recommendations in your inbox every morning.
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