SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — A judge is ordering the state of Utah to pay $475,000 in legal fees after it lost a court fight over a law that banned serving alcohol during the superhero film “Deadpool.”
Judge David Nuffer handed down a strongly worded decision Wednesday denying the state efforts to reduce the bill. He wrote the “political judgment” of behind passing the law was a “legitimate choice, but it has consequences.”
Movie theater Brewvies sued after Utah regulators threatened to fine them up to $25,000 under a law largely aimed at strip clubs that also prohibits serving booze during films with simulated sex or full-frontal nudity.
Nuffer struck down the rule as a violation of free speech.
An online fundraiser that attracted “Deadpool” star Ryan Reynolds brought in a total of about $22,000.
