The "penumbras and emanations" theory of jurisprudence appears to have taken hold in the heartland:
Nude dancing is still an art form in Iowa, at least at a strip club in the tiny town of Hamburg.
The Iowa Court of Appeals on Wednesday dismissed the state's request for a review of the issue. The request followed a judge's 2008 decision that Clarence Judy, then-owner of Shotgun Geniez, didn't violate the state's public indecent exposure law.
Judy was charged after a 17-year-old girl stripped onstage in the southwestern Iowa club in 2007.
Iowa law makes it a criminal offense to allow minors to perform a live act intended to arouse patrons. But Fremont County Judge Timothy O'Grady ruled that the strip club was protected because the law doesn't apply to theaters, art centers, or other venues devoted to the arts or theatrical performances.
O'Grady said prosecutors failed to prove the club wasn't a theater.
Shane Vander Hart at Caffeinate Thoughts was shocked that the judge would confuse a strip club with an "art center," but I felt obligated to remind him:
It happens all the time, Shane. Guys innocently set out to find the local art center, accidentally stumble into a strip club, and spend several hours stuffing dollars into the dancers' garters before realizing their mistake.
Perhaps this has even happened to Judge O'Grady a time or two.
Iowa Court Discovers 'Art' Loophole Allows 17-Year-Old Strippers
samsung1Ohio
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last commentThe Right-wing ramblings of a rag like the American Spectator aside, hasn't this so-called "art loophole" existed in IA for quite a while now?
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Yes the loophole has existed for a while..the reason why this is recent news is because "The Iowa Court of Appeals on Wednesday dismissed the state's request for a review of the issue."
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What makes a loophole a loophole? Who is to say what "Art" is anyway. If you get that warm happy feeling in your groin does that mean it isn't art?
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That's not only the club I consider my favorite, but that's also an old story. I believe it has been around in Iowa since 1998, because one of the clubs in Davenport was sued, but they determined that that place (I forget which one) was a theater.
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arbeeguy,
Those in government have tried for years to control every aspect of the lives of everyone in this country. NOW, it is worse than ever, but I doubt they will ever succeed unless they eventually dumb down the entire population.
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What is the current law with respect to artistic expression in Ohio? While it seems that this would be something clearly understood once ruled upon, the reality here in Ohio seems to be a lot of fluidity. Every little nuance seems to qualify as something to change interpretation (I suppose that's what "law" is though, right?)
The higher courts here threw out local bans on nude dancing where liquor is sold because they violate either free speech or artistic expression--I don't recall which they cited--and now we have statewide legislation that puts ridiculous limitations on topless dancing and related contact and then gives back to communities the option to ban nude dancing.
There's too much pandering to downstate beliefs here that ignores basic principles of speech and expression. Of course it has created new jobs for all these undercoverf predators.
Maybe we should entice that Iowa judge and the people who wrote that loophole into law to move to Ohio.
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If a corporation can donate to a political campaign, then a corporation can get aroused. The strip club was just a corporate entertainment.
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A corporation is a "person" except it can't have sex. It can't give blood. But it can squeeze the blood out of YOU.
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