Earlier this year, Craigslist came under fire from several different parties for its "erotic services" section. First it was singled out by Cook County Illinois Sheriff Thomas Dart in March, and then in May, South Carolina Attorney General Henry McMaster did the same.
McMaster sent Craigslist CEO Jim Buckmaster a letter demanding that he remove sections of the South Carolina Craigslist site "which contain categories for and functions allowing for the solicitation of prostitution and the dissemination and posting of graphic pornographic material" within ten days of receiving his letter or face criminal investigation and prosecution.
Buckmaster didn't succumb to the political pressure, and filed federal suit against the Attorney General seeking both declaratory relief and a restraining order against any further legal threats.
At the time of filing the suit, Buckmaster said, "Mr. McMaster has persisted with his threats despite the fact that Craigslist is operating in full compliance with all applicable laws, has earned a reputation for being unusually responsive to requests from law enforcement, has eliminated its 'erotic services' category for all US cities, has adopted screening measures far stricter than those Mr. McMaster himself personally endorsed with his signature just 6 months ago, has far fewer, and far tamer adult service ads than many mainstream print and online venues operating in South Carolina, has made its representatives available to hear Mr. McMaster's concerns in person, and has politely asked Mr. McMaster to retract and apologize for his unreasonable threats."
The suit complained that McMaster was violating Craigslist employees' personal liberties and right to free speech.
Now, McMaster is asking for these complaints to be dismissed on the grounds that "Neither [Craigslist] nor the users of its Web sites have a constitutionally protected right to post such advertisements." McMaster says his office's investigations are continuing, and that charges against the site can only be issued if local law officials determine that the site is in violation of the law.
McMaster still maintains that Craigslist "is the vehicle of choice for prostitution in this country."
Copyright Betanews, Inc. 2009