NY1 At 20: 1996 Report Looks At Sex Shop Crackdown In Times Square
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NY1 VIDEO: As NY1 News revisits its 20-year history, the station looks back at reporter Kristen Shaughnessy's April 3, 1996 story on the dwindling number of sex shops in Times Square following a crackdown by the state.
NY1 FOLLOW-UP: The fight over part of that zoning regulation continues today. It exempts stores from the regulation if no more than 40 percent of their inventory is related to adult entertainment. In 2001, the City Council voted to strengthen the law to crack down on stores believed to be abusing the loophole. The case worked its way all the way up to the state's highest court which ruled the law could stand - if the city could prove that stores were in fact complying in name only. A State Supreme Court judge is currently weighing evidence from both sides on whether or not that is the case.