Second Castillo Appeal Denied

In a setback for First Amendment rights, the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals has denied the Petition for Discretionary Review of the "display of obscenity" conviction of Texas comic retailer Jesus Castillo. This appeal by the attorney for the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund was a second appeal; in the first, the Fifth District Court of Appeals upheld Castillo's conviction in a 2-1 decision. The notice of the denial came via postcard, dated October 23rd, to CBLDF executive director Charles Brownstein. It said only, "On this day, the Appellant's Petition for Discretionary Review has been REFUSED." The only remaining course of action is an appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court. The CBLDF board of directors is currently voting on whether to proceed with that appeal; a decision is expected by Monday.

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