A federal judge says Florida's new anti-drag law threatens free speech and can't be enforced, at least for now

• A federal judge is blocking enforcement of Florida's new law on drag shows.
• The law would make it illegal to expose children to "lewd conduct."

A federal judge on Friday accused Florida officials of threatening free speech with a new law that aims to restrict drag performances in the state, issuing a ruling that temporarily blocks the measure from being enforced.

In May, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis signed into law a bill, SB 1438, that he said was designed to protect children from sexually explicit drag shows. In particular, the law would empower the state to revoke the operating and alcohol licenses for establishments that allow minors into such a performance.

The law was immediately challenged in court by the Orlando location of Hamburger Mary's, a burger joint that regularly hosts drag shows, including events it bills as family-friendly. In a lawsuit, the restaurant challenged the law's ambiguity, arguing that the term "lewd conduct," cited in the measure, was vague and would lead to self-censorship, stifling freedom of expression.

The court agreed.

In his ruling on Friday, Judge Gregory A. Presnell of the US District Court for the Middle District of Florida noted that Florida already has laws on the books designed to protect children from explicit content. The drag law, by contrast, "is specifically designed to suppress the speech of drag queen performers," Presnell wrote, pointing to a bill sponsor's claim that the law would put an end to "Drag Queen Story Time," which entails no sexually explicit content.

The injunction, which prevents the Department of Business and Professional Regulation from bringing enforcement actions under the law, is only temporary but signals that the court believes the plaintiff is likely to win the case on its merits.

Last year, the department filed a complaint against an Orlando venue over a performance of a "Drag Queen Christmas" — and threatened to pull the liquor licenses for two other hotels that hosted the show — claiming children had been exposed to vulgar and immoral sexual content.

However, in March, the Miami Herald revealed that state investigators who attended the show, in fact, wrote that they "did not witness any lewd acts," suggesting the performance was being targeted for political reasons.

Presnell, an appointee of former President Bill Clinton, cites that example in Friday's ruling, describing it as "indicative" of the DeSantis' administration's "appetite for finding obscenity in drag performances, even where undercover state agents have reportedly concluded none exists."

A spokesperson for DeSantis said the state is merely seeking "to prevent the sexualization of children" and will challenge the decision. "We believe the judge's opinion is dead wrong and look forward to prevailing on appeal," the spokesperson, Jeremy Redfern, said in a statement.

The LGBTQ+ rights organization Equality Florida called the anti-drag measure a "war on freedom."

"Free states don't wage war on drag art or target the small businesses that host it," Brandon Wolf, press secretary for the group, said.

DeSantis, who is seeking the 2024 Republican presidential nomination, has touted his record on culture war issues, including a bill limiting instruction about LGBTQ issues and human sexuality in classrooms and a high-profile fight with Walt Disney World over the company's criticism of that measure.

Presnell's ruling marks the third time this month that a judge has struck down portions of DeSantis' anti-LGBTQ agenda. In two separate rulings in June alone, federal Judge Robert Hinkle, also a Clinton appointee, struck down measures that would have restricted access to treatments like puberty-blocking medication and hormone therapy for transgender people.

"Florida's drag queens are here to stay," Nikki Fried, chair of the Democratic Party of Florida, said in a statement. "Ron DeSantis is losing his unconstitutional culture war on LGBTQ+ Floridians — this is the third law that the courts have rejected in the last three weeks and another embarrassing 'L' on his record."

As governor, DeSantis signed numerous other anti-trans rights bills into law, including one that criminalizes instances in which people use public restrooms that don't match the gender they were assigned at birth.

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