POP/ROCK - Feb. 20, 1990

Record Store Owner Back in Court: Tommy Hammond, who was convicted in Alabama in 1988 of violating an obscenity ordinance by selling a recording by the rap group 2 Live Crew, has taken his case back to court. Under Alabama law, any conviction before a Municipal Court judge must receive a jury trial at the circuit court level before it can be appealed. Hammond, who was fined $500 after his municipal court conviction in Alexander City, was charged after a woman complained about her son buying a copy of the “Move Somethin’ ” cassette at Hammond’s store. His case is believed to mark the first time music has been found to be legally obscene in the United States.