The law that Stormy Daniels was arrested under is
12 O.R.C. § 2907.40(C)(2), which provides:
No employee who regularly appears nude or seminude on the premises of a sexually oriented business, while on the premises of that sexually oriented business and while nude or seminude, shall knowingly touch a patron who is not a member of the employee's immediate family or another employee who is not a member of the employee's immediate family or the clothing of a patron who is not a member of the employee's immediate family or another employee who is not a member of the employee's immediate family or allow a patron who is not a member of the employee's immediate family or another employee who is not a member of the employee's immediate family to touch the employee or the clothing of the employee.
Stormy's charges were dismissed by
Zach Klein, the Columbus City Attorney, on grounds that Stormy wasn't a performer who "regularly appears" at that particular strip club. However,
charges remain against the two other strippers who were cited along with Stormy for the same exact conduct, because they "regularly appear" at the club. If that seems arbitrary, that's because it is; the law is clearly aimed at outlawing lascivious touching by employees who "regularly appear[ ] nude or seminude" (i.e. strippers). Replace the phrase "employee who regularly appears nude or semi-nude" with "strippers" and the meaning is clear. The drafters obviously didn't intend to create an exception for guest strippers who do not "regularly appear" at a particular club.
The Sixth Circuit even analyzed the same statute and noted that it "prohibits
any performer who is nude or semi-nude from touching or being touched." Yet by adopting a strained construction which ignores the clear meaning of the statute, Klein was able justify giving Stormy a literal "get-out-of-jail-free card."
To be fair, the statute can be plausibly read to suggest that "regular appearance" is an element of the crime. However, that's an argument which I would expect a defense attorney to make (i.e., that the statute was vague as applied). It's rather rare that a prosecutor would adopt a criminal defense argument wholesale without otherwise being forced to do so. In this case, it's probably because Klein is
a Democrat, and he recently won election by essentially
campaigning against Donald Trump (“It’s my intent as the city attorney . . . to stand up for our values in the city of Columbus in the face of adversity from the Trump administration and Jeff Sessions’ justice department,” Klein said). In fact, Klein has used the Columbus City Attorney's Office for ostensibly partisan purposes, including
joining a lawsuit over a census question which asks about immigration status (a matter which is none of his business, or the City's). Of course it would be disastrous for the Left if Stormy turned out to be a sleazy criminal – something Klein is undoubtedly aware of. For that reason, Mr. Klein put his thumb on the scale of justice to aid Stormy, and thus aid "the Resistance" against Donald Trump.
I've read speculation that perhaps Stormy will file a civil rights suit against the officers for "false arrest" or something like that. But Stormy has absolutely zero chance of succeeding in a civil rights suit under 42 U.S.C. § 1983. First of all, if she does file suit, the Court will be forced to slap down Klein's strained interpretation of the law, effectively declaring Stormy guilty. Simply put, there was probable cause to believe that Stormy Daniels violated the law. Second, there's something called "qualified immunity" which practically guarantees that the police in "close call" situations like this one will never be civilly liable for damages. At the end of the day, not getting prosecuted is the best Stormy can hope for.
So did Klein just legalize full-contact stripping for guest performers in Columbus, OH? Of course not. The purpose of the law is clear. This was a one-off gift to Stormy Daniels, because she's stormy Daniels, because she's a Liberal icon of resistance against Donald Trump. Klein basically used his office to do political favors for the Left, of which he is a part. Pretty shady IMO.
But in the Court of Public Opinion, Stormy Daniels, like O.J. Simpson, will always be GUILTY.