Federal Appeals Court Overturns Sex Toys Ban

NEW ORLEANS (AP) - An appeals court has overturned a Texas
statute outlawing sex toy sales.
The ruling by the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in New
Orleans leaves Alabama as the state with the strictest ban on such
devices.
Tuesday's ruling says the Texas law making it illegal to sell or
promote obscene devices -- violates the 14th Amendment on the right
to privacy.
Companies that own Dreamer's and Le Rouge Boutique, which sell
the devices in Austin, and retailer Adam & Eve, sued in in 2004 in
Austin.
They appealed after a judge dismissed the suit.
The Texas Attorney General's Office, which represented the
Travis County district attorney, has not decided whether to appeal.
In 2004, a woman in Burleson was arrested for selling two sex
toys to undercover officers.
Passion Parties consultant Joanne Webb was charged with
violating the state's obscenity law. A judge later dismissed her
case.
Alabama lawmaker {encode="yke@cec.conteduc.uab.edu" title="John Rogers"} has promised to introduce legislation this session that would revoke the state's 10-year ban on the sale of sex toys. "A shower head could be considered a sex toy," Rogers said. "It's just bringing the state into the 20th century."
The law prohibits the sale and manufacture of items "designed or marketed as useful primarily for the stimulation of human genital organs." It does not prohibit the possession of sex toys and provides an exception if the devices are sold for medical purposes.
A number of lawsuits have been filed since the law was passed in 1998 by people who claim it violates privacy rights.

(Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)