2020 Missouri Revised Statutes
Title XXXVIII - Crimes and Punishment; Peace Officers and Public Defenders
Chapter 573 - Pornography and Related Offenses
Section 573.531 Establishment of business, prohibited where — nudity in establishment prohibited — display of sexual activities, requirements — state requirements — hours of operation — minors and alcohol prohibited — definitions.

Effective - 01 Jan 2017, 2 histories

573.531. Establishment of business, prohibited where — nudity in establishment prohibited — display of sexual activities, requirements — state requirements — hours of operation — minors and alcohol prohibited — definitions. — 1. No person shall establish a sexually oriented business within one thousand feet of any preexisting primary or secondary school, house of worship, state-licensed day care facility, public library, public park, residence, or other sexually oriented business. This subsection shall not apply to any sexually oriented business lawfully established prior to August 28, 2010. For purposes of this subsection, measurements shall be made in a straight line, without regard to intervening structures or objects, from the closest portion of the parcel containing the sexually oriented business to the closest portion of the parcel containing the preexisting primary or secondary school, house of worship, state-licensed day care facility, public library, public park, residence, or other sexually oriented business.

2. No person shall establish a sexually oriented business if a person with an influential interest in the sexually oriented business has been found guilty of any of the following specified offenses for which less than eight years has elapsed since the date of conviction or the date of release from confinement for the conviction, whichever is later:

(1) Rape and sexual assault offenses;

(2) Sexual offenses involving minors;

(3) Offenses involving prostitution;

(4) Obscenity offenses;

(5) Offenses involving money laundering;

(6) Offenses involving tax evasion;

(7) Any attempt, solicitation, or conspiracy to commit one of the offenses listed in subdivisions (1) to (6) of this subsection; or

(8) Any offense committed in another jurisdiction which if committed in this state would have constituted an offense listed in subdivisions (1) to (7) of this subsection.

3. No person shall knowingly or intentionally, in a sexually oriented business, appear in a state of nudity.

4. No employee shall knowingly or intentionally, in a sexually oriented business, appear in a semi-nude condition unless the employee, while semi-nude, shall be and remain on a fixed stage at least six feet from all patrons and at least eighteen inches from the floor in a room of at least six hundred square feet.

5. No employee, who appears in a semi-nude condition in a sexually oriented business, shall knowingly or intentionally touch a patron or the clothing of a patron in a sexually oriented business.

6. A sexually oriented business, which exhibits on the premises, through any mechanical or electronic image-producing device, a film, video cassette, digital video disc, or other video reproduction, characterized by an emphasis on the display of specified sexual activities or specified anatomical areas shall comply with the following requirements:

(1) The interior of the premises shall be configured in such a manner that there is an unobstructed view from an operator's station of every area of the premises, including the interior of each viewing room but excluding restrooms, to which any patron is permitted access for any purpose;

(2) An operator's station shall not exceed thirty-two square feet of floor area;

(3) If the premises has two or more operator's stations designated, the interior of the premises shall be configured in such a manner that there is an unobstructed view of each area of the premises to which any patron is permitted access for any purpose from at least one of the operator's stations;

(4) The view required under this subsection shall be by direct line of sight from the operator's station;

(5) It is the duty of the operator to ensure that at least one employee is on duty and situated in an operator's station at all times that any patron is on the portion of the premises monitored by such operator station; and

(6) It shall be the duty of the operator and of any employees present on the premises to ensure that the view area specified in this subsection remains unobstructed by any doors, curtains, walls, merchandise, display racks, or other materials or enclosures at all times that any patron is present on the premises.

7. Sexually oriented businesses that do not have stages or interior configurations which meet at least the minimum requirements of sections 573.525 to 573.537 shall be given one hundred eighty days after August 28, 2010, to comply with the stage and building requirements of sections 573.525 to 573.537. During such one hundred eighty-day period, any employee who appears within view of any patron in a semi-nude condition shall remain, while semi-nude, at least six feet from all patrons.

8. No operator shall allow or permit a sexually oriented business to be or remain open between the hours of 12:00 midnight and 6:00 a.m. on any day.

9. No person shall knowingly or intentionally sell, use, or consume alcoholic beverages on the premises of a sexually oriented business.

10. No person shall knowingly allow a person under the age of eighteen years on the premises of a sexually oriented business.

11. As used in this section, the following terms mean:

(1) "Establish" or "establishment", includes any of the following:

(a) The opening or commencement of any sexually oriented business as a new business;

(b) The conversion of an existing business, whether or not a sexually oriented business, to any sexually oriented business; or

(c) The addition of any sexually oriented business to any other existing sexually oriented business;

(2) "Influential interest", includes any of the following:

(a) The actual power to operate a sexually oriented business or control the operation, management, or policies of a sexually oriented business or legal entity which operates a sexually oriented business;

(b) Ownership of a financial interest of thirty percent or more of a business or of any class of voting securities of a business; or

(c) Holding an office, such as president, vice president, secretary, treasurer, managing member, or managing director, in a legal entity which operates a sexually oriented business;

(3) "Viewing room", the room, booth, or area where a patron of a sexually oriented business would ordinarily be positioned while watching a film, video cassette, digital video disc, or other video reproduction.

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(L. 2010 S.B. 586 & 617, A.L. 2014 S.B. 491)

Effective 1-01-17