Tennessee Attorney General Jonathan Skrmetti announced that the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit ruled in favor of the State in Friends of George’s, Inc. v. Mulroy—a case involving a constitutional challenge to Tennessee’s Adult Entertainment Act. Last summer, a federal district court halted enforcement of the law in Shelby County. The Sixth Circuit concluded that the district court was mistaken, explaining that “there is no constitutional interest in exhibiting indecent material to minors.”

“Tennessee’s Adult Entertainment Act has been consistently misrepresented since its adoption,” said Tennessee Attorney General Skrmetti. “As a state overflowing with world-class artists and musicians, Tennessee respects the right to free expression. But as the Court noted, Tennessee’s ‘harmful to minors’ standard is constitutionally sound and Tennessee can absolutely prohibit the exhibition of obscene material to children. The Court of Appeals focused on what the law actually says and ordered the case dismissed.”