from www.dailynews.com – A day after adult-film studios halted production because a performer tested positive for HIV, Vivid Entertainment and two actors said Thursday they want their appeal of a recent U.S. District Court’s decision regarding condoms on movie shoots to be heard quickly.
Vivid, along with performers Kayden Kross and Logan Pierce, said they will file a request to the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals to accelerate a hearing to overturn U.S. District Judge Dean D. Pregerson’s pictured] rulings last week that found Measure B’s mandatory condom requirement on all shoots in Los Angeles County to be constitutional.
“We will continue our First Amendment fight for as long as it takes,” said Steven Hirsch, co-founder and chairman of Vivid Entertainment. “We look forward to presenting our case and strongly believe that we will ultimately prevail.”
Last week, Pregerson denied the adult-film industry’s motion for a preliminary injunction against Measure B, saying data provided by the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health regarding sexually transmitted diseases within the adult-film industry provide evidence that condoms on set would be a health benefit.
The results found that since 2004, the health department received reports of 2,396 cases of chlamydia, 1,389 cases of gonorrhea and five instances of syphilis among adult-film performers.
Introduced and supported by AIDS Healthcare Foundation, Measure B requires porn studios to apply for public health permits and for the county Department of Public Health to lead inspection and enforcement efforts. Pregerson sided with the industry in questioning the constitutionality of such enforcement.
The industry largely opposed Measure B, saying self-regulation and testing is effective. Universal City-based Vivid Entertainment filed a lawsuit against the county health department in January, saying the measure violated actors’ rights to free speech and expression.
Diane Duke, executive director for the Free Speech Coalition, a trade group for the industry, said the industry’s testing standards do work, which is why the recent case of HIV was caught and adult-film companies halted production. She said HIV cases in the industry are rare, and the increased protocols set by the coalition are effective.
Duke added there is no indication that the recent case of HIV was transmitted on set. She also said the use of condoms on adult-film sets cannot substitute testing.
“The use of condoms does not preclude a strong testing regime because condoms by themselves also are not 100 percent effective at preventing the transmission of many types of sexually transmitted infections,” she said.
“Especially because of the prolonged activities engaged in to create an adult movie, condoms often break or cause injury that can make performers more vulnerable to infection.”
The HIV case has been reported to the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health, according to the department.