can breathe a little easier today. A federal court's ruling means booksellers don't have to worry about being prosecuted as perverts for selling Judy Blume's hormonal, coming-of-age books to those who are hormonal and coming of age.

of an Oregon law that prohibit furnishing children and teens with sexually explicit materials are too broad and violate the First Amendment,

.

In the opinion, the court said the sections would block age-appropriate books and cover far more material than the hard-core pornography that the state contends the law targets.

"In their current form, the statutes sweep up a host of material entitled to constitutional protection, ranging from standard sexual education materials to novels for children and young adults by Judy Blume," appeals Judge Margaret McKeown wrote.

The state had argued that the law is designed to block only hard-core pornography, pointing to an exemption that permits materials where sexual content is "an incidental part of an otherwise nonoffending whole and serves some purpose other than titillation." The state also has said it would not abuse the law to go after booksellers.

But the judge wrote: "Although we appreciate the state's argument that it has not, and will not, bring prosecutions against individuals or businesses like Powell's Books, this stand down approach cannot overcome the flaws in the statute."

The court found that the law's wording would include books and materials that are educational and aimed at younger audiences. The court pointed to sex-education books and novels containing sexually explicit material that would not be considered "an incidental part" but rather a substantial portion of the book.

In addition, even if the sexually explicit material were incidental, it may have a titillating purpose, potentially putting a bookseller or other entity at risk of prosecution.

In the opinion, the court noted, for example, that providing minors with

would violate the law because the children's book includes explicit cartoon drawings of sexual intercourse, as would Blume's "Forever," which has explicit narratives involving masturbation and intercourse.

The lawsuit was filed in 2008 by Powell's, a group of bookstores, the American Civil Liberties Union, Planned Parenthood of Columbia/Willamette and the Cascade AIDS Project against the state attorney general's office and Oregon's district attorneys.

The state is evaluating its options, said Tony Green, a spokesman for

The appeals court ruling reverses an earlier decision by U.S. District Judge Michael W. Mosman of Portland that had affirmed the state law.

The law, adopted by the Legislature in 2007, was designed to target sex-abuse "grooming" attempts by potential predators who might give children and young adults sexually explicit books and other materials in hopes of lowering their inhibitions to sexual contact.

State Rep. Andy Olson, R-Albany, and then Rep. Kate Brown, a Portland Democrat who is now secretary of state, were among lawmakers who sponsored the bill.

Olson said he was disappointed by the appeals ruling, noting that legislators spent a great deal of time trying to craft a bill sensitive to constitutional concerns while still protecting kids and providing the tools for police to enforce those protections.

Michael Powell, the owner of Powell's Books, one of the plaintiffs in the case, said his stores have done nothing different since the law went into effect in 2008.

"I refuse to do business where I cut off children and young adults from being able to avail themselves of the world's literature," he said.

He added that he hopes the decision will end the matter. But "if they want to make a federal case out of it, well bring it on."

--