Alabama judge upholds anti-riot law attorney says is ‘born out of a racist backlash’ Updated May 14, 2021; Posted May 14, 2021 Mobile police officers wearing gas masks are seen through the shattered window of a police vehicle during a standoff on an I-10 on-ramp in downtown Mobile on Sunday, May 31, 2020.Lawrence Specker | LSpecker@AL.com Facebook Share An Alabama federal judge has ruled that a controversial law used to prosecute protesters across the country over the past year is constitutional. On Thursday, Judge Terry Moorer of U.S. District Court in Mobile issued an order rejecting claims by defense attorneys for Tia Pugh that the federal anti-riot law is racially biased. Pugh is charged with one count of violating the law during a protest in the wake of George Floyd’s murder last year.