Supreme Court Arguments on Child P*RN Law
The Supreme Court heard oral argument today in U.S. v. Williams, a case challenging the constitutionality of the pandering provision of the PROTECT Act.
The American Constitution Society has a good explanation of the issues in the case.
At issue is the “pandering” provision in the 2003 Prosecutorial Remedies and Other Tools to End the Exploitation of Children Today Act (“PROTECT Act”). The provision makes it illegal to solicit, distribute, present or offer “actual child pornography” — a sexually explicit visual representation of a real minor — or any visual representation of a minor engaging in obscene behavior.
More....
The PROTECT Act’s pandering provision would garner almost no attention if it merely attempted to regulate real offers to transact in child pornography, cases where the material involved is indisputably illegal in nature. However, the pandering provision goes much further, criminalizing “purported offers”— offers that characterize otherwise lawful representations as illegal child pornography by emphasizing the material’s prurient appeal. The First Amendment question here is, if the pictures being “pandered” are lawful, can Congress criminalize speech drawing attention to the pictures’ sexual nature, or has Congress committed the ultimate First Amendment sin with its new pandering offense, prohibiting the mere expression of unpopular ideas?
The oral argument transcript will be available at the court's website here.
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