Obscenity
Judiciary Subcommittee Holds Obscenity Hearing
Examining the constitutional context for obscenity prosecution, scholars Patrick Trueman of the Family Research Council and Robert Destro of Catholic University gave testimony Wednesday before the Senate Committee on the Judiciary Subcommittee on Constitution, Civil Rights, and Property Rights.
Goalie Entertainment Facing Federal Obscenity Charges
A federal grand jury has returned a 23-count indictment against Denver-based adult retailer Edward Joseph Wedelstedt, his wholly owned adult retail chain, Goalie Entertainment Holdings Inc., and six others on racketeering, obscenity and tax charges. Prosecutors are seeking to seize at least $48 million in assets related to the case.
Obscenity Basics: Part 2
So what is obscenity? Simply put, an obscene photograph, video clip, DVD, live show, website or other matter is simply an expressive work that has lost the protection originally afforded to it by the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution.
Obscenity Basics: Part 1
If you distribute explicit depictions of hardcore sexual activity, via the Internet or otherwise, you are subject to the federal obscenity laws. These are serious criminal laws. They are federal felonies that carry substantial penalties for their violation, including lengthy prison terms, fines and crushing forfeitures.
AG Gonzales Declares War on Obscenity
Attorney General Alberto Gonzales has effectively declared war on the adult entertainment industry, pledging to seek out and prosecute obscenity cases. Gonzales is instructing U.S. attorneys to "carefully review federal laws" and find out how they can strengthen their ability to prosecute obscenity cases.
Constitutional Obscenity?
In a few short hours, the Senate Committee on the Judiciary Subcommittee on Constitution, Civil Rights, and Property Rights will hold a hearing in Washington, DC on "Obscenity Prosecution and the Constitution" – a hearing which will only hear one side of the debate...
Canadian Webmaster Appeals Obscenity Conviction
Webmasters hoping to steer clear of trouble with the U.S. DOJ will find no safe harbor from our neighbors to the north. Weeks after the dismissal of Extreme Associates’ obscenity case in U.S. district court, a Canadian webmaster continues to appeal his 2002 obscenity conviction.
Federal Obscenity Statutes Found Unconstitutional
A federal judge has thrown out the criminal charges filed against Rob Black and Extreme Associates, finding that the obscenity statutes invoked by the U.S. Attorney’s office were unconstitutional.
India Obscenity Arrest Sparks Global Uproar
With more American companies increasingly turning to India for e-commerce opportunities, the arrest of an eBay unit’s executive over a porn video for sale on his company’s website has caused an international stir and debate about the country's strict obscenity laws.
Website Exec Faces Obscenity Charges
An executive of India auction website Baazee.com has been arrested in New Delhi in conjunction with the listing of eight pornographic CDs on the eBay-subsidiary site. The arrest stems from a listing of a video depicting oral sex between a teenage boy and girl captured on cellphone and later burned onto CDs.
Spain, Venezuela Ramp Up Broadcast Obscenity Rules
Spain and Venezuela both cracked down on obscenity over the airwaves this week by imposing new regulations for broadcasters. In recent years, cutthroat competition between Spanish-language channels has led producers to look for programs containing sexy and reality sex TV.
Dute Pleads Guilty to Attempted Obscenity Pandering
Homemade porn star Jennifer Dute pleaded guilty to two counts of attempted pandering obscenity on Thursday morning and was sentenced to six months in jail. Dute had been originally convicted in October of 2002 for selling a series of homemade videos in which she had sex with multiple partners.
Attorney for Extreme Associates Asks for Obscenity Case Dismissal
Defense counsel for indicted adult film producer Rob Black argued in U.S. District Court Monday that federal obscenity laws are unconstitutional and infringe on a person’s right to privacy. Asking for the case to be dismissed, his attorney stated that an individual's right to possess pornography extends to distribution.
Sex Shop Worker Avoids Obscenity Sentence
A sex shop owner avoided an obscenity sentence this week when a judge ruled that a state ban on sex toys is unconstitutional and granted the defense's motion to dismiss the case. Sergio Acosta was arrested in September 2003 and charged with obscenity for selling sex devices at his adult bookstore.
Obscenity Charges Against Passion Parties Peddler Dropped
A Texas judge has dropped obscenity charges against Joanne Webb, the Texas housewife who was arrested Nov. 13 in an undercover police sting operation for selling sex toys. Two Johnson County police officers posing as a couple had purchased two dildos from Webb at her husband’s office in Burleson, located near Ft. Worth. Afterwards, Webb was busted and charged with violating Texas’ obscure anti-obscenity law, which bans devices meant to stimulate genitalia.
Three Men Indicted on Conspiracy and Obscenity
Three men have been charged with various offenses related to the operation of a website chain that sold "obscene" videos on the Internet.
Max Hardcore on Obscenity Victory
The following is my statement concerning my recent victory on obscenity charges over the State of California, brought by the Los Angeles District Attorney’s office, represented by Michelle Anderson.
Feds Ramp Up Obscenity Strategy
Members of the adult entertainment industry have long speculated that a flurry of federal obscenity prosecutions have been teetering over their heads ever since President George Bush took office in 2000.
Sweet's Obscenity Case Lingers On
Sweet, the president of Sweet Entertainment Group, was arrested in 2002 with three other members of his business and charged with six counts of obscenity based on eleven fetish videos from the SadoSlaves.com Library, according to P.G. Kent Snowsell, head of legal affairs for Sweet Entertainment.
Two Men Charged With Obscenity
One of two men charged with distributing obscene videos pleaded guilty this week in U.S. District Court. Thomas W. Lambert is facing a nine-count indictment for selling and shipping rape and sodomy videotapes via a catalog business.