Federal Judge Overturns Outdated Pornography Law

A federal judge has struck down a governmental effort to control pornography on the Internet. The 1998 U.S. Child Online Protection Act deems that it is a crime if Internet sites allow children to access material that is “harmful to minors.” The law would have expected sites to ask for a credit card number or other such proof of age. Penalties of a $50,000 fine and up to 6 months in prison would have been given to those who did not comply.

In 2004, the Supreme Court upheld a temporary injunction on the basis that the law may have been outdated and would probably be struck down. Sexual health sites complained that the law was vague and may have other repercussions to these sites. The judge declared that parents can already protect their kids by filtering online material without limiting free speech.
“Perhaps we do the minors of this country harm if (free speech) protections, which they will with age inherit fully, are chipped away in the name of their protection,” wrote Senior U.S. District Judge Lowell Reed Jr., who presided over a month long trial last fall.

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