NCJ Number
73291
Date Published
1980
Length
253 pages
Annotation
In a 1977 survey, residents of the Clinton neighborhood in New York City indicated that sex-related activities of the adjacent Times Square area posed a threat to their community and that enforcement of nuisance abatement laws was needed.
Abstract
The report first reviews legal problems and court decisions regarding obscenity cases, with particular attention to first amendment rights and the use of nuisance laws by localities to regulate the adult entertainment industry. This study was prompted by concern that the spread of Times Square pornography was contributing to the deterioration of Clinton which the city designated as a neighborhood preservation area in 1973. A preliminary survey of community leaders showed that they considered pornography a major problem, comparable to narcotics. The study then tried to determine if residents shared a view of massage parlors, x-rated film houses, bookstores, live sex theaters, and peep shows as public nuisances which were offensive and injurious to daily neighborhood activities. Beginning in April 1977, a random sample of the Clinton population selected from the voter lists was asked by mail to participate in the survey. From this group, 155 persons were interviewed concerning attitudes toward the sex industry, first amendment protections for adult entertainments, and solutions to the problem. Respondents were generally white, middle-aged, long term residents of Clinton, and had varied occupations. Within the sample, 47.7 percent were male and 51 percent were female. Residents indicated that a demand for adult entertainment should be tolerated, but they felt it should not constitute a nuisance to the neighborhood. Prostitutes and massage parlors received the highest offensiveness ratings. Participants were almost devenly divided in their responses when asked if operators of adult businesses were entitled to protection by the first amendment, but all were conservative in their opinions regarding the content of adult films and agreed that sex business brought more traffic and venereal disease to the area. Responses to questions concerning remedial action indicated considerable faith in legislative and law enforcement remedies. Tables, photographs, and a bibliography of approximately 70 references are included. A postscript, maps, the survey questionnaire, and an index are appended.