Lawyers for Red Rose File Motion to Dismiss Obscenity Charges

PITTSBURGH — Attorneys for Karen Fletcher, aka Red Rose, have filed a pretrial motion petitioning the court to dismiss the obscenity indictment against Fletcher for disseminating six allegedly obscene fictional stories on her website describing the torture and sexual abuse of children.

Fletcher counsel Lawrence G. Walters argues that obscenity laws are unconstitutional as applied to purely textual works.

“This case is a little unique,” Walters told XBIZ. “We don’t believe the content at issue here meets the threshold for obscene material, so we’re asking the court to look at this before trial. We must protect Fletcher’s 1st Amendment rights of free speech; her works have obvious literary value.”

In the motion obtained by XBIZ, Lawrence argues that text is fundamentally different than pictures, because people process text differently. The defense is prepared to offer testimony from expert witnesses to this effect.

At issue in this case are six allegedly obscene works that were available on Red-Rose-Stories.com only for paid members, of which Fletcher claims there were only 29.

“Since the site in question is a membership site, no one could ‘accidentally’ stumble upon these stories; anyone could have stopped reading them before they were offended and there were warnings on the page,” Walters said. “Red Rose’s readers sought out this kind of material.”

While textual works have been ruled to be obscene by the courts, they all come before the Miller vs. California ruling in 1973, which sets the definition of obscenity against community standards. Lawrence said the U.S. Supreme Court has not issued a definitive ruling on whether or not the written word can be judged obscene.

“…Over the past 34 years, the Government has never sought to prosecute speech composed exclusively from the written word,” Lawrence said in the motion. “The absence of any post-1973 prosecutions under the federal obscenity statutes involving non-pictorial works reflects a sea change in the manner in which American society…views obscenity in a non-visual context.

“Such glaring lack of text-only obscenity cases further reflects a demonstrative evolution in community standards throughout the country, with respect to literary works, and recognition of the inherent serious value contained in such works.”

Additionally, the defense has filed a motion to dismiss the charges based on strict scrutiny. In order to overcome the presumption that content-based regulations are invalid under the 1st Amendment, the content must survive a strict judicial review, which requires the government to demonstrate that the law (in this case, obscenity law) is narrowly tailored to promote a compelling government interest.

While the 1st Amendment does not protect obscene works, all works are presumed to be protected until a judge or jury finds them to be obscene. Walters argues that since the stories have not been formally judged to be obscene, they are presumed to be protected. Walters said the government has put the “cart before the horse.”

“The government has to show that there is a compelling government interest in the expression that they are trying to prohibit,” Walters said. “The burden is on them to prove that these solely textual ‘fantasy’ stories fall outside the realm of constitutional protection. The government has to justify the obscenity laws. This case urges them to take a fresh look.”

Lawrence said that the government will file a written response to the motion and the court will set oral arguments.

Copyright © 2025 Adnet Media. All Rights Reserved. XBIZ is a trademark of Adnet Media.
Reproduction in whole or in part in any form or medium without express written permission is prohibited.

More News

2025 XBIZ Miami Speaker Lineup Announced

XBIZ is pleased to announce the release of the full speaker lineup for XBIZ Miami, the latest edition of the adult industry’s premier creator conference, set to take place May 19-22 at the Nautilus Sonesta Miami Beach hotel in South Beach.

AV Bulletin: Arizona's About-Face, What New Laws Mean for Adult

Industry stakeholders and free speech advocates have anxiously been awaiting the Supreme Court’s decision in Free Speech Coalition v. Paxton, which could significantly impact state age verification laws around the United States. In the meantime, state legislatures continue to weigh and pass AV bills, the U.K. and the EU are moving ahead with their own AV mandates and strategies, and legal challenges continue to play out in U.S. courts — with some cases on hold pending the SCOTUS ruling in Paxton.

Million Billion Media Launches New Website

Management and PR agency Million Billion Media (MBM) has launched a new website.

'Neon Nightswim' Party Returns to XBIZ Miami

XBIZ is pleased to announce that the annual Neon Nightswim Pool Party will once again illuminate XBIZ Miami on Tuesday, May 20.

FSC Addresses UK Age Verification Guidelines

The Free Speech Coalition (FSC) has published an article offering guidance on the U.K.'s Online Safety Act and the various guidelines put forward by the country's telecommunications regulator Ofcom.The article follows:

European Commission Posts AV Guidelines, Seeks Feedback

The European Commission has made public its draft guidelines on protecting minors online under the Digital Services Act, including age verification requirements covering adult sites and platforms.

'White-Hot' Party Set to Kick Off XBIZ Miami

XBIZ is pleased to announce that the annual White-Hot Party, the official opening bash of XBIZ Miami, is set for Monday, May 19, at Mynt Lounge in South Beach.

AEBN Publishes Popular Searches for March, April

AEBN has announced the top search terms for March and April from its straight and gay theaters in all 50 states and the District of Columbia.

Takedown Piracy Adds 'Search Max' Feature

Takedown Piracy has launched Search Max, a search engine for detecting, verifying, and removing Google infringements.

Sex Workers' Group Fights Proposed Swedish Ban on 'Remote' Sexual Services

The European Sex Workers’ Rights Alliance (ESWA) has launched a campaign against a Swedish government proposal to expand current laws against purchasing sexual services to apply to acts performed remotely by cammers, streamers and custom content creators.

Show More