HUNTSVILLE, Ala. (Reuters)
A lawyer asked a federal judge Wednesday to strike down an Alabama law banning the saleof vibrators, saying the statute was a government invasion into
the bedrooms of people pursuing ``perfectly normal'' activities.
``We just think this demonstrates a bias toward conduct that is
perfectly normal,'' lawyer Mark Lopez, of the American Civil
Liberties Union, told U.S. District Judge Lynwood Smith.
Smith heard arguments in a lawsuit filed by a group of women who
oppose a law enacted last year that bans the sale of
vibrators and other sex toys. He took the case under
advisement
but did not indicate when he would rule on the matter.
The suit names several women as plaintiffs, including B.J.
Bailey, who sells sexual aids and novelties at parties, and
Sherri Williams, who owns romance boutiques in Huntsville and Decatur,
Alabama.
``It's a $10,000 fine and a year of hard labor if you get caught
selling vibrators,'' said Williams.
``This is not a stereotypical sex shop,'' Williams said of her
business, Loving Enterprises Inc. ``We do candles and
chocolates and lingerie, all the ingredients for a romantic evening. It
just so happens that sex toys are one of those ingredients.''
Last year, the Alabama Legislature passed an anti-obscenity
statute that outlawed strip clubs and barred the sale of items
to enhance sex, including vibrators and certain kinds of condoms.
``They set out to eliminate strip clubs, but along the way they
snuck in sex toys,'' Williams said. ``Not only did they take
away your entertainment, but when they were done they also took away
your right to entertain yourself.''
