Topless Bar Ban Gets Boost from State Court

New York, NY —

The city's attempt to place tighter restrictions on topless bars and pornography shops got a boost from a state appeals court yesterday. WNYC's cindy Rodriguez reports.

If an adult shops wants to remain open in a residential area no more than 40 percent of its merchandise may be x-rated. But the city says many were trying to skirt the law by stocking their shelves with items like kids videos that they knew would never be sold.

So the city added extra rules to close that loophole. And a state's mid-level appeals court ruled that it acted legally.

Lawyers for sex shops said the ruling means most will have to close or convert into nightclubs. They say they will try to get the ruling stayed and will appeal to the state's highest court.

The city has claimed that adult entertainment businesses have a negative impact on neighborhoods because crime rates go up and property values go down.