Dallas police have been notifying the operators of sexually oriented businesses that they will be enforcing restricted operating hours.
As stated in the notice from Dallas Police Chief Eddie Garcia, sexually oriented businesses (SOBs) within city limits must close between 2 a.m. and 6 a.m., or risk losing their licenses, incurring criminal charges, or being ordered to pay steep penalties.
“The Dallas Police Department sent a letter to each licensed sexually oriented business and visited each licensed business with a copy of the letter, outlining the revised ordinance,” DPD spokesperson Kristin Lowman said, according to the Dallas Observer.
Violators could be sentenced to up to a year in prison or a fine of up to $4,000.
The initiative to restrict the late-night hours of SOBs has been on the books for quite some time, with Mayor Eric Johnson announcing it was on the City’s agenda back in January 2022, as covered in The Dallas Express. The ordinance ultimately passed 15-0, with Johnson linking these businesses directly to the city’s crime rate.
“I think this is a very measured and proactive response to the violent crime that is still too high in our city,” Johnson said, according to WFAA.
However, the move to restrict SOB hours received considerable pushback from the owners of these establishments, which include strip clubs, adult book and video stores, sex shops, and escort services.
“I’m not a problem,” explained Gary, a spokesperson for Paris Adult Book Store and New Fine Arts, according to the Observer. “But the City seems to think that I’m part of the problem because of the crime. … They lump me in with the strip clubs or whatever’s causing problems. It’s just aggravating.”
Lawyers representing five operators whose businesses the law deems sexually oriented filed claims in federal court, asserting that the ordinance violated their constitutional rights. The lawsuit effectively blocked DPD’s enforcement of the new rules as the ordinance’s legal validity and its supporters’ claims that SOBs were tied to crime were being considered.
Ultimately, the U.S. 5th Circuit Court of Appeals gave the ordinance the green light in October of this year. It was set to come into effect on November 30.
As previously reported in The Dallas Express, DPD attributes the recent surge in prostitution-related offenses in Northwest Dallas to the city’s high concentration of SOBs. Of the 27 SOBs licensed as of January 2022 in the city, 80% were in this area, which is part of District 6, represented by City Council Member Omar Narvaez.
District 6 has seen its crime score swell, with 505 of the city’s 552 prostitution-related offenses logged by DPD as of December 6 occurring within this district, according to the Dallas Police Department’s crime analytics dashboard. This type of crime has seen a notable 108.3% increase compared to last year.
Meanwhile, DPD has been grappling to reduce crime amid a severe staffing shortage. It currently comprises 3,200 officers, while the City previously recommended a force of 4,000 to adequately ensure public safety needs.