Reply #56: Canadian court lifts ban on 'swingers' clubs

[MrPrax]

OTTAWA, Canada (Reuters) -- Group sex among consenting adults is neither prostitution nor a threat to society, the Supreme Court of Canada ruled Wednesday as it lifted a ban on so-called "swingers" clubs.

In a ruling that radically changes the way courts determine what poses a threat to the population, the top court threw out the conviction of a Montreal man who ran a club where members could have group sex in a private room behind locked doors.

"Consensual conduct behind code-locked doors can hardly be supposed to jeopardize a society as vigorous and tolerant as Canadian society," said the opinion of the 7-2 majority, written by Chief Justice Beverley McLachlin.

...

The Supreme Court judges agreed.

"Criminal indecency or obscenity must rest on actual harm or a significant risk of harm to individuals or society. The Crown failed to establish this essential element of the offense. case must therefore fail," McLachlin wrote.
...

The Supreme Court ruled that from now on, judges should pay more attention to whether society would be actively harmed.

http://edition.cnn.com/2005/WORLD/americas/12/21/canada.court.reut/

Good to see courts using common sense..seems to be catching in places like Pennsylvania and Canada.