Although Wilson still faces prosecution on 301 obscenity charges, members of the FSC called the order a “very welcome development.”
The FSC, along with the First Amendment Lawyer’s Association and the ACLU of Florida, had contributed to an amicus brief submitted earlier this week to the Court in Wilson’s defense.
Co-authored by FSC and FALA member Reed Lee, the brief asked the Court to reverse a lower court ruling that authorized the Polk County Sheriff's Office to revoke Wilson's bail and throw him back in jail because there was “probable cause” that pictures on Wilson's website were obscene.
Wilson had removed all explicit material from his site, NowThatsFuckedUp.com, in early December.
“We are very pleased that the Florida courts have turned back the prosecutor's unprecedented and dangerous effort to burden obscenity defendants further by jailing them if they continue to disseminate their expression before a proper determination is made on the obscenity issue,” Lee said.
Although the Court has yet to explain why Wilson was released, a detailed explanation is expected soon.