JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — The 11th Circuit Court of Appeals upheld legislation requiring strip club dancers in Jacksonville to be 21 and older.
It’s the latest federal ruling in an anti-sex trafficking ordinance that ended up changing state law.
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“It was just so exciting,” former Jacksonville Councilwoman LeAnna Cumber said.
She was thrilled to hear a federal judge upheld the ordinance she wrote in 2020. She said it made Jacksonville the first city in the U.S. to require strip club dancers to be at least 21 and get a license with the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office to work. She said it would make a real difference in curbing sex trafficking in Jacksonville.
“Girls are more like to be trafficked before the age of 21. It’s just statistically a fact,” Cumber said. “Nationally, the average age to be trafficked is 17. If you pull the ability of these girls to be in areas and be in situations where they’re likely to get trafficked, then it helps resolve those issues.”
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It took years to take effect. Several strip clubs filed a lawsuit against the city, claiming the ordinance violates the First Amendment. A judge ruled in favor of the city in 2023, but the clubs appealed.
In that time, a Jacksonville-area state representative filed a bill raising the age for all of Florida. It passed, and faced a similar lawsuit that was on hold until this case finished.
One of the plaintiffs in the lawsuit is WACKO’s Too Inc. We reached out to the owner for comment, and they were working on reaching out to their lawyer. We asked one local what they thought of this ordinance.
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“I would agree with that,” said Luke Raynolds. “Probably because alcohol is usually intertwined with clubs and strip clubs like that. And if you have to be 21 or older to have alcohol, then why not the same for strippers?”
Something to note: Cumber said that the law was stayed pending the appeal, so the age restrictions haven’t been enforced since the legislation passed.
Action News Jax’s Madison Foglio reached out to JSO to see if they will be enforcing the law now that the ruling has been upheld, and is waiting to hear back.
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