Oral arguments in the case, brought by three nude dance clubs against South Salt Lake in response to a city ordinance that required pasties and G-strings, were first heard by Utah's five justices nearly three years ago.

Of the three clubs - American Bush, Leather & Lace and Paradise - only American Bush has survived. While it currently lacks a liquor license, the club complies with the city's mandate that dancers be clad in the bare minimum.

The 3-2 decision - more than two years in the making - pleased South Salt Lake officials, along with Tennessee attorney Scott Bergthold, who defended the city's right to require minimal clothing in sexually oriented businesses.

"They just restricted the manner in which the erotic message is portrayed" - not the message itself, Bergthold said.

Bergthold paraphrased the U.S. Supreme Court's ruling in two related cases: "Even though it's a little less graphic, the dancers have plenty of opportunity to portray their erotic message without dropping the last stitch."

However, Orem attorney Andrew McCullough, who argued for the plaintiffs's right to free expression. voiced disappointment, calling the decision "a treatise on Mormon history."

The majority opinion relied on original intent - what the Mormons were thinking when they got together back in the 1800s and framed the state Constitution, McCullough said.

But times and mores change, and the crafters of the Constitution likely meant to leave room for present-day interpretation, reasons McCullough.

McCullough voiced further concern over diminishing individual freedoms.

"The state Constitution gives us more protection against government influence than the Federal constitution," said McCullough. "But now they seem to be back-tracking, departing from recent state jurisprudence."

The two dissenting opinions came from Chief Justice Christine Durham and Justice Ronald Nehring.

Durham criticized the majority's historical approach, expressing concerns over how other cases might be affected.

Durham cited as an example Brown vs. Board of Education - the 1954 U.S. Supreme Court decision that ended school segregation - where such an approach could produce a "morally unacceptable" result.

Speaking for the city, Mayor Bob Gray said he was thrilled.

"We've been fighting these issues for years," Gray said. "We always knew we were on solid ground but it's nice to hear it from the court system that we're moving in the right direction."

City Attorney David Carlson, went a step further, applauding the decision as a moral triumph.

"It's encouraging in today's world to see that there's still judges on the bench that have the moral courage to say something's right or wrong and not get lost in the gray area," Carlson said.

cmckitrick@sltrib.com

Timeline of the fight over nude dancing in South Salt Lake

l April 2001: South Salt Lake enacts an ordinance requiring exotic dancers to wear pasties and G-strings. Orem attorney Andrew McCullough sues on behalf of three South Salt Lake nude clubs - American Bush, Leather & Lace and Paradise Club.

l November 2001: McCullough files second suit, defending First Amendment rights of six exotic dancers. This case is still pending in the federal appeals process.

l January 2002: Federal and state courts rule against nude dancers and clubs.

l July 2002: Paradise Club shuts down.

l October 2003: Leather & Lace folds. American Bush invests in pasties and G-strings and continues to operate.

l November 2003: The Utah Supreme Court hears arguments.

l Friday: Utah's high court issues ruling against total-nude dancing. The vote: 3-2.