Blinders Ordered on 11 Racks Displaying Explicit Papers

Acting on a complaint from the La Canada Junior Woman’s Club, the city has ordered blinders placed on 11 news racks that it has determined are displaying sexually explicit publications.

However, a letter intended to warn the distributor of the newspapers of possible prosecution may not have reached the current owner of the news racks.

When contacted by The Times, Freddy Franco, who owns the Pacoima-based Kimbo Distributors, said he received the city’s Nov. 2 letter but does not plan to respond because he sold the news racks more than a year ago to Tri-Valley Distributors of Sun Valley.

Tri-Valley owner John Chicknowsky told The Times that he owns the news racks but has not received any notice. Chicknowsky said he will comply with the ordinance if contacted by the city.

City Manager Gabrielle Pryor said city officials will now try to contact Tri-Valley but also may refer the matter to the district attorney to determine if, in fact, Franco’s company no longer owns the racks.

Assistant City Manager Mark Alexander said the city was not aware of the news racks until it received a letter from the Build a Better Community Committee of the women’s club in October.

A representative of the 60-member club said the women were concerned that newspapers for sale in six racks in front of the post office at 607 Foothill Blvd. and five racks near a pizza restaurant at 942 Foothill Blvd. could harm youngsters.

“The stands right outside the post office are on a route that kids take to school,” said Michelle Sparks, the group’s past president. “This is a family-oriented town. I’m no prude, but it offends me that my 8-year-old son can peer into them,” she said.

The group’s letter requested the city to enforce its 1987 ordinance requiring sexually explicit materials to be placed in “blinder racks” that show only the top third of the publication.

The ordinance is based on a section of the state Penal Code that allows restrictions on the display of material that has “a prurient, shameful or morbid interest in nudity, sex or excretion and is patently offensive to the prevailing standards in the adult community as a whole with respect to what is suitable material for minors and is utterly without redeeming social importance.”

Alexander said the publications cited by the women’s club met that standard.

Although claiming that he no longer owns the news racks, Franco said he thinks that the city’s law is unconstitutional.

“Other cities tried to make me use the blinder racks, but we went to court and I won,” he said. “The judge ruled that it was unconstitutional to force me to use them.”

Franco would not identify the other cities nor the court in which his case was heard.

Alexander said he is not concerned with violating anyone’s constitutional rights. “The state empowered the cities to do what they need to in a case like this.” he said.