Commentaries on Handley's Sentencing for Obscene Manga

The United States District Court for the Southern District of Iowa sentenced Christopher Handley to six months in prison for possessing obscene manga on February 11. After the sentencing, several figures in the American manga community provided ANN with their thoughts.

• Charles Brownstein (Comic Book Legal Defense Fund Executive Director)
• Carl Horn (Dark Horse Comics editor)
• Jason Thompson (Manga: The Complete Guide author)
• Eric Chase (Christopher Handley's defense attorney)
• Frenchy Lunning (Expert witness for the defense)

When contacted by ANN, the United States Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Iowa deferred to its media release, the plea agreement, and the original indictment without further comment.

Horn and Thompson also wrote editorials about Handley's case in 2008, before the sentencing. Simon Jones, founder of the erotic manga publisher Icarus Publishing, provided some additional commentary, as did acclaimed author Neil Gaiman (The Sandman, Stardust, Coraline, The Graveyard Book).

Case History

The case against Handley began when a United States Postal Inspector intercepted and confiscated a package addressed to Handley on May 12, 2006. According to the prosecution, the package contained seven manga titles, "each of which featured many drawings featuring characters appearing as minor females engaged in sex acts." The inspector then executed a search warrant of Handley's home on May 23, 2006, and officials seized about 80 "contraband" books from Handley's 1,200-item collection. Handley was charged on May 8, 2007, and he pleaded guilty on May 20, 2009.