MISSION VIEJO : Law to Bar Display of Sex Gear Weighed
The City Council is considering an ordinance that would prohibit stores from displaying sexual paraphernalia in the sight of children.
If approved, merchants selling merchandise defined in the proposed law as aiding or assisting “in the stimulation and/or performance of specified sexual activity” would be required to keep those items in a separate room.
The proposed ordinance was drafted at the urging of Councilwoman Victoria C. Jaffe, whose 9-year-old daughter and 12-year-old son came across a display of sexually oriented gifts in a local mall shop.
This week, the City Council instructed City Atty. Scott Field to more clearly define exemptions to the proposed law for some businesses, such as pharmacies that sell contraceptives.
Last fall, in response to a citizen complaint, the City Council passed an ordinance requiring merchants to cover sexually explicit magazines and videocassette jackets.
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