Alleged Alabama Teabagger Arraigned, Pleads Not Guilty

Brian Downing pled not guilty to charges he committed a sex crime in the hours after the Crimson Tide's BCS Championship win over LSU in New Orleans when he allegedly teabagged a Tigers fan at the Bourbon Street Krystal restaurant.

Judge Karen Herman set bond at $50,000 on Downing, who's been indicted on one count of sexual battery and one count of obscenity. Downing's lawyer attempted—and failed— to get the bond lowered, and claims Downing has no income after being fired by the Hibbett Sporting Goods store where he's worked since college.

There are two curious aspects to this case that have emerged since the indictment. First: Most media sources (the always-reliable Times-Picayune being the exception) have reported the first charge as "sexual battery of a male victim," which leads one to conclude there are different penalties for committing sexual battery depending on the sex of the victim. We couldn't find any such differentiation in the Louisiana Revised Code, and every Google hit for the phrase refers to Downing. We're curious why it matters, and who originally elected to add the sex of the victim to the story.

Second: Obscenity? Really? On Bourbon Street?