The full 11th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled 8-5 to reverse a lower court injunction, allowing the state to enforce its Protection of Children Act statewide, reports The Christian Post. The law allows for punishment of businesses that admits children to see an adult life performance.
The case began after a bar and restaurant chain, Hamberger Mary’s, sued Florida after the state enacted the law in 2023. The chain hosts drag shows and held a night open for children to attend on Sundays.
A senior district judge granted an injunction which prohibited the enforcement of the law. The Supreme Court denied lifting he injunction, and a three-judge panel for the 11th Circuit upheld it.
Now, the full court has reverse the decision, and legal experts say the en banc decision sets a broad judicial precedent.
Mat Staver, founder and chairman of Liberty Counsel, explains why this full-court ruling carries so much weight.
"This is a great decision because it's not just a three-judge panel. It's an entire panel of all the judges of the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals, 8-5 decision, that upheld Florida's Protection of Children Act, which bans the admittance of minors to adult live programs," Staver says.
Some people in Florida and beyond have argued that drag performances are protected speech under the First Amendment. However, Staver emphasizes that the court's ruling specifically targets explicit content that meets the legal standard for obscenity, which is not constitutionally protected.
"There is no First Amendment protection when you're talking about obscenity. And that also applies to parents that want to expose children to this kind of obscenity. There's no right under the First Amendment to expose children to obscene material," Staver states.
The federal ruling applies directly to Florida, Georgia and Alabama, while setting persuasive precedent for similar legislation nationwide.
