Constitutional Law – Nude dancing – alcohol

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U.S. Court of Appeals For the Seventh Circuit

Civil

Constitutional Law – Nude dancing – alcohol

At the pleadings stage, it was error to dismiss a constitutional challenge to ban on nude dancing, but correct to dismiss a challenge to the possession of alcohol in public accommodations.

“Based on this deferential standard of review, plaintiffs’ challenge fails. Dix’s asserted interests in enacting the alcohol restrictions—maintaining ‘social order, health, welfare, and safety’ and ‘preserv[ing] the “dry” status of the Village of Dix to the fullest extent permitted by law’—are undoubtedly legitimate and bear a reasonable relation to the open container and public accommodations bans. Although plain-tiffs allege that the true motivation behind the alcohol restrictions was to interfere with the successful operation of Foxxxy Ladyz, this allegation is insufficient to render a regulation invalid under rational basis review so long as some hypothetical legitimate government interest exists to support the challenged regulation. See id. Finally, because regulations survive rational basis review even if they are ‘speculation[s] unsupported by evidence,’ id., Dix was under no obligation to demonstrate concrete evidence of adverse secondary effects prior to enacting the contested ordinances. The district court was therefore correct to dismiss plaintiffs’ challenge to Ordinance Nos. 2010-04 and 2010-06.”

Affirmed in part, and Reversed in part.

14-1642 Foxxxy Ladyz Adult World, Inc., v. Village of Dix

Appeal from the United States District Court for the Southern District of Illinois, Reagan, J., Flaum, J.

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