Oral arguments were heard in the Fifth Circuit this morning for the State’s appeal of the August 31 Book People, Inc. v. Wong decision by Judge Alan D. Albright to preliminarily enjoin the law, preventing it from going into effect while the case is argued. The Judge’s preliminary injunction was stayed by a motions panel of the Fifth Circuit on administrative grounds unrelated to the merits of the case, so the law is currently in effect pending the results of today’s hearing. The suit, brought by Austin’s BookPeople and Houston’s Blue Willow Bookshop along with ABA and other co-plaintiffs, challenges the Texas “READER Act” (formerly HB 900) on constitutional grounds. If it remains in effect, the law would force booksellers to rate all past, present, and future sales to schools according to vaguely defined “sexual content,” an onerous and expensive task almost no independent bookseller could manage. We will bring you more information about the progress of the case as we have it. |
