News
FL Court: Online Content Held to Distant Community Standards
posted on by Crystalyn Hodgkins
The 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled on February 3 that online content is to be judged by the community that is able to access it. Paul F. Little, a pornography producer, was convicted for violating obscenity laws in Tampa, Florida, despite producing and selling the material in California.
Little's attorney's argued that applying a local community standard to the Internet violated First Amendment rights. However, the court rejected this argument.
According to the ruling, even if the obscene materials may be legal where they are produced and in other places, they are illegal and the producers of the material can be charged as long as they violate the standards of one community.
Little is currently serving a 46-month sentence that started in January 2009. He was convicted on 10 violations of federal obscenity laws.
Source: Tampa Bay Online via Slashdot
Update: 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals's name corrected. Thanks, Shay Guy.
this article has been modified since it was originally posted; see change history