Jury Deadlocked In Anti-Nudity Case

Naked unrest is stirring once again on the streets of Berkeley.

An effort to convict two topless performance artists of breaking Berkeley’s 3-year-old anti-nudity ordinance ended last week in a hung jury.

The jury deadlocked 10-2 in favor of acquitting them.

“I just encourage anyone who hears this news in their faraway places to feel encouraged to … go out and celebrate breast freedom and enjoy the magic of being in such a trusting position,” said breast-barer Debbie Moore.

Moore, 44, and Nina Shilling, 50, who perform in parks as the X-plicit Players, had faced up to 18 months in jail and fines of $3,000 if convicted.

A prosecutor had to explain to snickering jurors why nudity was banned in the city where University of California students launched the Free Speech Movement in 1964.

The ordinance followed a profusion of skin on city streets and occasionally in City Council chambers after Berkeley student Andrew Martinez earned brief fame in 1992 as “The Naked Guy” for strolling around campus in the buff.