Posted on 05/12/2005 7:50:48 AM PDT by Dan from Michigan
Appeals court upholds TV producer's indecent exposure conviction
5/12/2005, 5:35 a.m. ET
The Associated Press
LANSING, Mich. (AP) — The Michigan Court of Appeals upheld the indecent exposure conviction of the producer and host of a comedy show on Grand Rapids' public access cable channel.
Timothy Huffman, 47, was convicted of misdemeanor indecent exposure in Kent County in January 2003. He was charged after a viewer complained about a sketch that aired April 7, 2000 on "Tim's Area of Control" on the GRTV channel.
The three-minute segment consisted of a full-screen close-up of a man's genitals displayed in front of a drape that covered the rest of his body. A face was drawn on the organ and a gruff voice told jokes as though it was speaking.
Huffman was sentenced to one day in jail and a year's probation, and was ordered to pay $1,035 in fines and court costs. The American Civil Liberties Union and two national television advocacy groups helped Huffman appeal his conviction, arguing it violated his free-speech rights.
But in an opinion released Wednesday, the appeals court said any "incidental restriction" on the First Amendment is "no greater than is essential to the furtherance of the governmental interest in promoting public morality by prohibiting public nudity."
Huffman, an unemployed musician-cook and father of five, said Wednesday that "a relentless prosecutor" had targeted him because he has a criminal record and lacked the resources to defend himself.
"We asked them in court, `Why don't you prosecute "Schindler's List?" It has nudity,'" Huffman told the Detroit Free Press for a story Thursday. "And they said to me — `You're no Steven Spielberg.'"
He said he would seek an appeal to the Michigan Supreme Court.
Huffman said he continues to produce "Tim's Area of Control" and one other two-hour program that airs early on Saturday mornings. He said he mostly sticks to music and adult humor.
That's enough. Knock it off.
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