Supreme Court Won’t Allow Florida to Enforce Law Banning Children From Viewing Drag Shows; Supreme Court Denies Request to Reinstate Florida Drag Show Law

Supreme Court won’t allow Florida to enforce law banning children from viewing drag shows

The Supreme Court on Thursday refused to allow Florida to enforce its law preventing children from being exposed to adult, sexually explicit performances such as drag shows.

In a 6-3 action, the high court declined Florida’s request to reverse a district court ruling that blocked its law from being enforced — not just against the restaurant that sued, but statewide. The lower court said the law infringed on the restaurant’s First Amendment rights.

Justices Clarence Thomas, Neil M. Gorsuch and Samuel A. Alito Jr. would have granted Florida’s request to enforce the law while another court challenge to it is playing out.

Justice Brett M. Kavanaugh, who was joined by Justice Amy Coney Barrett, wrote that the state’s legal filing didn’t focus on the First Amendment argument, but over the breadth of the district court’s order. The state disagreed with the district court issuing a statewide order instead of just issuing a decision protecting the plaintiff, an Orlando restaurant.

“The issue arises here in the context of a First Amendment overbreadth challenge, which presents its own doctrinal complexities about the scope of relief. This case is therefore an imperfect vehicle for considering the general question of whether a district court may enjoin a government from enforcing a law against nonparties to the litigation,” wrote Justice Kavanaugh. —>READ MORE HERE

Supreme Court denies request to reinstate Florida drag show law:

The U.S. Supreme Court on Thursday denied a request by Florida to partially halt a judge’s order blocking the state from enforcing a new law banning minors from attending drag shows.

A majority of the court concurred in the decision to not grant the stay Florida asked for in October. Justice Brett Kavanaugh, in an opinion joined by Justice Amy Coney Barrett, indicated that the court was unlikely to grant full review in the case.

What happened: The restaurant chain Hamburger Mary’s, which hosts drag and comedy shows, sued the Sunshine State over the summer, claiming a new law, Florida’s Protection of Children Act, was overly broad and chilled the right to free speech under the First Amendment.

The law, signed by Gov. Ron DeSantis in May, prohibits anyone from knowingly allowing a minor into an “adult performance.” DeSantis has claimed drag shows sexualize children.

In June central Florida Judge Gregory Presnell, a federal appointee of former President Bill Clinton, issued a preliminary injunction at the request of the restaurant chain and stopped the state from enforcing the law.

Presnell in his ruling determined that while some people may find drag performances inappropriate, they aren’t necessarily obscene. —>READ MORE HERE

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