A US judge on Friday blocked a new Florida law restricting drag performances, the third time this month that federal courts have struck down laws backed by Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis that affect gender or LGBTQ issues .
In all three cases, issues supported by Republican presidential candidate DeSantis lost because the laws appeared to infringe on people’s constitutional rights.
In Friday’s decision, U.S. District Judge Gregory Presnell of the Middle District of Florida granted an injunction preventing the state from enforcing a law that prohibits minors from attending “obscene live performances,” calling- the too wide one.
The judge declined to throw out the law entirely, meaning the underlying lawsuit challenging it will go forward.
The governor’s office said the judge was “very wrong” and predicted the state would win on appeal.
“Of course, it is constitutional to prevent the sexualization of children by limiting access to live performances for adults,” DeSantis spokesman Jeremy Redfern said in an email.
Hamburger Mary’s, an Orlando bar and restaurant that hosts drag shows, comedy skits and dances, filed the lawsuit in response to the law DeSantis signed into law in May.
Hamburger Mary’s argued that the law was written so broadly as to have a “chilling effect” on First Amendment free speech rights as guaranteed by the US Constitution. The judge agreed, finding that the plaintiff was likely to succeed at trial on First Amendment grounds.
“Florida already has statutes that provide this protection (from obscene conduct). Rather, this statute is specifically designed to suppress the speech of drag queen performers,” Presnell wrote.
DeSantis has been in charge of a conservative campaign that restricts LGBTQ rights.
Wednesday, another invalid judge a Florida rule and statute that prohibited state Medicaid payments for transgender health care.
This same judge on June 6 partially blocked Florida to enforce its recent ban on people under 18 receiving gender-affirming care, such as puberty blockers and hormone therapy.
In both cases, U.S. District Judge Robert Hinkle of the Northern District of Florida cited the 14th Amendment’s guarantees of equal protection under the law.
