CHICAGO — A federal judge has thrown out a lawsuit aimed at driving classified ads for prostitution off the Craigslist website. U.S. District Court Judge John Grady said not all postings on the Craigslist “Adult Services” section advertised prostitution and that other services could legitimately appear there.
“A woman advertising erotic dancing for male clients is offering an adult service, yet this is not prostitution,” he said in a 31-page opinion Tuesday. He said such an ad “might even be entitled to some limited protection under the First Amendment” to the U.S. Constitution.
Cook County Sheriff Tom Dart filed the lawsuit against Craigslist in July, saying a change in the category name from “Erotic Services” to “Adult Services” had failed to deter prostitutes from using the site. Dart says it is plain that prostitution is still being advertised. The Associated Press
