Insane Clown Posse Court Date: 'Gang' Status Appeal Decision Handed Down (VIDEO NSFW)

The Insane Clown Posse (ICP), a Detroit rap-metal machine, consists of two people: Joseph Bruce, known as Violent J, and Joseph Utsler, known as Shaggy 2 Dope. If you've never heard the ICP's music, it's probably because the "horrorcore" is never played on the radio for being too graphic. The painted posse-of-two took offense when the Federal Bureau of Investigation described their fans, known as Juggalos, as a "loosely organized hybrid gang," in a 2011 National Gang Threat Assessment report.

The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) filed a suit citing the Freedom for Information Act. ICP wanted to see the F.B.I.'s sources. An appeal, argued in Cincinnati on Thursday, was lost. A Detroit federal judge denied the appeal stating that the U.S. Justice Department has no say over how the authorities use a national gang report, according to the Associated Press via The New York Times.

As HNGN previously reported, the ICP duo claims the gang label has "tarnished reputations and hurt businesses."

"Our merchandise sales are just about cut in half," 41-year-old Bruce said earlier this year. "You don't see the stickers in the back windows anymore because everyone's afraid to wave the flag in their car. They're afraid they're going to get pulled over and harassed."

The F.B.I. no longer classifies Juggalos as a gang, but the 2011 report is often used by law authorities to detain those who display ICP pride, according to Law Enforcement Today. The ACLU of Michigan alleges the free speech and due process rights of Insane Clown Posse and its fans are being violated. Attorney Farris F. Haddad, who filed the suit for the ACLU, told Law Enforcement Today that he's been "a huge fan" since he was 12-years-old. "I could potentially lose my law license for going to a concert or listening to a band or wearing a T-shirt or something like that because, technically, I am committing a crime or associating with criminals," he said.