The Arizona Supreme Court weighed in last week on tattoos and freedom of expression. The City of Mesa refused to issue a permit to Ryan and Laetitia Coleman for operating a tattoo parlor. The Colemans filed suit, alleging, inter alia, that their free speech rights were violated. The superior court dismissed the complaint for failure to state a claim upon which relief can be granted. However, the Arizona Supreme Court said that “[r]ecognizing that tattooing involves constitutionally protected speech, we hold that the superior court erred by dismissing the claim as a matter of law.” Click here to read the opinion.
Oklahoma has only allowed tattoo parlors in the state in the last 6 years. The statute that prohibited tattooing was superceded in November 2006.
Hat tip to Jurist.