Purcell, Virginia- What happened to going to the zoo for class projects?

Naomi Harralson of Patrick Henry College had an adult video store, Movie Gallery, shut down it’s backroom porn section as a class project, no less. Harralson was given an assignment by college president Michael Farris who teaches a Principles of Leadership class.

Farris apparently challenged Harralson and her classmates to be problem solvers and to take initiative. Farris, who obviously had his own agenda, decided to have his students do his dirty work by pointing Harralson in the direction of a local video store which maintained a backroom for selling adult material. “Naomi and a few of her classmates decided to use my example for their class project,” Farris proudly proclaims in a college newsletter.

“Taking on the porn industry, even at the local level, seemed to be an almost impossible task,” Farris wrote. But by the fall semester, Harralson had verified that the store sold tapes and decided to make this class project her Directed Research and Writing (DRW) apprenticeship assignment.

Harralson researched national, state, and local obscenity laws, court obscenity precedent, and the video company involved. She found numerous obscenity laws already on the books in Purcellville where the store operates.

Harralson then contacted the town manager and chief of police, who were eager to help but thought that nothing could be done about the pornography in the store’s backroom, according to Farris. Harralson explained that the law prohibits the distribution of any form of obscenity, regardless of its specific location or who is permitted to view it. As a result, the town leaders sent a copy of the town ordinance to the video store and to the company’s regional representatives. The store didn’t budge, but Harralson turned to the Office of the Commonwealth’s Attorney of Virginia, which agreed to prosecute under state public nuisance law if she could provide letters of complaint which were filed. The video store closed the backroom rather than face possible legal action.

“She has won a small but significant victory against a billion dollar industry, a victory we hope will encourage others to take similar action elsewhere,” Farris writes.