Is There A Constitutional Right To A Gangbang?
The town of Duncanville, Tx which is suburb of Dallas has been involved in its own petite Jerry Falwell type bible belt combat with the founders of a private “swingers club” named “The Cherry Pit“. The Cherry Pit is a private landed property tucked in away in an fashionable Duncanville suburban area. The Cherry Pit publishes on the internet and according to advertised reports draws as many as 130 members to a weekly party.
The Cherry Pit has been throwing adult orgy parties where guests pay a fee for entry and can engage in almost any kind of sexualgroup sex deeds they want on the premises. It is the position of the hosts that this does not constitute a “business” as the entrance money is to cover the cost of snacks, soft drinks etc and not a price for the privilege of engaging in sex from the tame to the “Pulp Fiction” apple in the mouth brand of entertainment…. It is whispered for an additional service fee they could even “bring out the gimp“….(just joking)
The whole deal happened backin December of 2007 when past some years of Cherry Pitt neighbors complaining about the crime, parties and “unsavory element” “the pit” was bringing to the community, the City of Duncanville passed the subsequent decree:
“the function and maintenance of a swinger to be unlawful and a public nuisance. Violation of the new order will result in a fine of up to $2,500.”
The city of Duncanville then decided that the events at the Cherry Pit were more than simply a party of “friends and family” seeking some enjoyment and resoluted that it was basically a sexually oriented commerce and subject to the decree. The response of Julie Norris, one of the founders of “The Pit” was as follows:
“I do not recognize what their classification of a business is, but to my understanding a business is public – anyone can simply walk into it and you shall pay to get in and we are none of that,” Norris said. “I allow donations. Have you ever had your friends over for a barbecue and asked everyone to pitch in $5 or bring a food? That is exactly what we do. The only condition to get into my residence is that anyone call and let me know that you are coming and you are on my reservation list.”
Ms Norris continued to state that she understood that the rule is a excuse to attack their lifestyles and values and that the decree regulating the club violated their First Amendment Rights to Privacy.
“It boils down to people want to put their ethics into my personal territory and I am going to stand against that,” Norris said. “That is not what the Constitution allows.”
The founders of the Cherry Pit afterward counter sued the city claiming the decree banning swingers clubs violates their privacy and due process rights. They are basically using the same argument under which a right to privacy was found under Roe v. Wade. They have to use this technique in making the right to privacy argument because there is really no right to personal privacy spelled out in the Constitution.
The Cherry Pit’s legal representative, Ed Klain, said the city tries to regulate private acts in a private home using the public irritation law as a “pretext” to do so….
The Cherry Pitt has stayed open while all the legal wrangling has taken place… Only today the City of Duncanville broadened the ordinance designed to lock the club down by making the definition of a adult club more universal and add a local petition process for adult clubs that the town orders to shut down.
***October 29, 2008 A jury found the founders of the Cherry Pit responsible of illegally operating a sexually oriented industry.
So what you do think? Should private citizens be allowed to “swap pits” at the Pitt without the government getting its’ rocks off?
You evidently can’t do cocaine in the confidentiality of your house. These things are illegal regardless of where they are engaged in.
Let us as well keep this in mind. Duncanville is NOT trying to order the Texas adult dating showing up at the place. They are trying to order the owners of the house in allowing the “Piters” to engage in sex for a fee at their home…. The government is NOT regulating where and with whom you can have sex with. They are telling the owners of the Pit that if they are charging you to do it, they are subject to government punishment. There is a colossal difference…
Nobody is going to tell you that you should not go down to your neighborhood red light area and get a BJ from Sallie the local crack addict or Eddie the cross dressing pimp or even take any of swinger parejas to the Cherry Pit for some entertainment. We of course know nonetheless that the act of handing over a dollar in exchange for the quickie makes the otherwise agreeable doing illegal prostitution on one end and the illegal action of soliciting a prostitute on the other end no matter where it happens (in addition to whatsoever other disgusting doing goes with “the other end”). The jury has decided that there is a undeniable government concern to control and/or criminalize such acts…
***October 29, 2008 A jury found the owner of the Cherry Pit guilty on 10 counts of running a sexually oriented company. The Cherry Pit has since been closed. While advise for the owners stated that the decree would be appealed and the statute challenged, it is vague if either of those was ever pursued.