Porn Industry Connects Gay Marriage to Condom Law

LOS ANGELES -- The adult film industry is citing a U.S. Supreme Court ruling on gay marriage in an effort to muzzle its main opponent in the legal battle to keep condoms off of its actors.

Porn industry attorneys filed a motion Wednesday in U.S. District Court asking that the AIDS Healthcare Foundation be removed from the industry's legal battle to repeal the condom requirement that Los Angeles County voters approved last year.

Shortly before the motion was filed, the Supreme Court ruled that a group that had campaigned successfully for Proposition 8, the voter-approved measure banning gay marriage in California, had no legal standing when it came to appealing lower court rulings overturning the law.

"Because we find that petitioners do not have standing, we have no authority to decide this case," the high court declared.

Porn industry officials are hoping U.S. District Court Judge Dean Pregerson will reach a similar conclusion following a July 11 hearing on Measure B, the condom law. It was the AIDS Healthcare Foundation that successfully lobbied Los Angeles County voters to adopt it.

In ruling on gay marriage, the Supreme Court said a private group has never been granted the standing to defend a state law in court when local officials decline to do so.

"I think that the ruling parallels what is happening in our case," said Steven Hirsch, chief executive officer of Vivid Entertainment Group, the industry's lead plaintiff in the case. "AHF, they really do have no role in the enforcement of Measure B. They have no authority to enforce Measure B. They have no stake in defending its enforcement and as a result they should have no standing."

Foundation attorney Samantha Azulay did not immediately return a call for comment.

Porn industry officials also plan to ask next month that Pregerson issue a preliminary injunction against the measure's enforcement until their case is decided. The lawsuit argues that the law requiring the use of condoms as a health and safety measure is an unconstitutional violation of free expression.

Since the law's adoption, Los Angeles County health officials have confirmed they are investigating at least one alleged violation.