Federal judge rules Texas drag ban unconstitutional

A Texas law prohibiting certain “sexually oriented” performances from taking place on public property or where they may be viewed by minors is unconstitutional, a federal judge declared Tuesday.

District Judge David Hittner, who had temporarily halted the state’s ban a day before the law was set to take effect in August, in a ruling on Tuesday wrote it represented “an unconstitutional restriction on speech” and barred state officials, including the attorney general, from enforcing it.