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The city of Duncanville, Texas that is outscirts of Dallas has been involved in its own small Jerry Falwell manner holy scripture belt combat with the owners of a private “swingers club” named “The Cherry Pit“. The Cherry Pit is a private landed property tucked in away in an upscale Duncanville housing region. The Cherry Pit posts on the web and according to advertised information invites as many as 160 swingers to a weekend gathering.

The Cherry Pit has been organizing group orgies where visitors pay a cost for entry and can engage in mosly any kind of sexualgroup sex activity they want on the location. It is the position of the hosts that this does not constitute a “business” as the entrance price is to cover the price of snacks, soft drinks etc and not a fee for the opportunity of engaging in sex from the tame to the “Pulp Fiction” apple in the mouth brand of entertainment…. It is whispered for an additional service money they would even “bring out the gimp“….(just kidding)

The entire thing started latein October of 2006 when past some years of Cherry Pitt neighbors complaining about the crime, noisy visitors and “unsavory element” “the pit” was bringing to the neighborhood, the City of Duncanville passed the next ordinance:

“the function and maintenance of a sex to be against the law and a public irritation. Violation of the new decree can effect in a fine of up to $2,000.”

The city of Duncanville then decided that the parties at the Cherry Pit were more than just a party of “friends and family” seeking some fun and determined that it was actually a sexually oriented industry and subject to the ordinance. The response of Julie Norris, one of the founders of “The Pit” was the following:

“I don’t know what their definition of a commerce is, but to my understanding a business is public – anyone can just walk into it and you should pay to get in and we are none of that,” Norris said. “I accept donations. Have you ever had your buddies over for a grill and asked everybody to pitch in $10 or bring a bowl? That is just what we do. The only condition to get into my home is that anyone call and let me know that you are coming and you are on my reservation list.”

Ms Norris went on to state that she assumed that the decree is a excuse to attack their way of life and values and that the order regulating the club violated their First Amendment Rights to Privacy.

“It boils down to people want to put their ethics into my private territory and I will stand against that,” Norris said. “That is not what the Constitution allows.”

The founders of the Cherry Pit afterward counter sued the city claiming the order banning swingers clubs violates their confidentiality and due process rights. They are mainly using the same argument under which a right to privacy was found under Roe v. Wade. They have to use this scheme in making the right to privacy argument because there is in fact no right to personal privacy spelled out in the Constitution.

The Cherry Pit’s legal advisor, Edward Kline, said the city tries to regulate private acts in a private dwelling using the public irritation law as a “pretext” to do so….

The Cherry Pitt has stayed open while all the legal backbiting has taken place… Just today the City of Duncanville broadened the ordinance meant to lock the club down by making the explanation of a swinger club more general and add a local appeal procedure for couples clubs that the town orders to close.

***October 29, 2008 A jury found the owners of the Cherry Pit guilty of illegally operating a sexually oriented company.

So what do you think? Should private citizens be tolerated to “swap pits” at the Pitt without the state getting its’ rocks off?

You evidently can’t do heroin in the seclusion of your property. These things are illegal regardless of where they are engaged in.

Let us also keep this in mind. Duncanville is NOT trying to order the Texas adult dating personals showing up at the venue. They are trying to order the hosts of the place in encouraging the “Piters” to engage in sex for a fee at their home…. The government is NOT regulating where and with whom you can have sex with. They are telling the owners of the Pit that if they are charging you to do it, they are subject to state administration. There is a colossal distinction…

No one is going to tell you that you should not go down to your neighborhood red light area and get a blowjob from Kathie the local crack addict or Jimmy the cross dressing pimp or even take any of parejas swinger to the Cherry Pit for some entertainment. We surely know nonetheless that the act of handing over a dollar in trade for the quickie makes the otherwise agreeable action illegal prostitution on one end and the illegal operation of soliciting a prostitute on the other end no matter where it occurs (in addition to whatsoever other nasty action goes with “the other end”). The government has decided that there is a compelling government interest to adjust and/or criminalize such acts…

***October 29, 2008 A jury found the owner of the Cherry Pit guilty on 10 counts of running a sexually oriented commerce. The Cherry Pit has since been closed. While counsel for the owners declared that the conclusion would be appealed and the statute challenged, it is vague if either of those was ever pursued.