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Opening Arguments Presented in COPA ChallengeThe American Civil Liberties Union presented opening arguments October 23 in its legal challenge to the Child Online Protection Act. The law, which was passed in 1998 but never enforced due to injunctions and lower court decisions, requires commercial websites to obtain proof of age before providing material considered harmful to minors.The ACLU counters that filtering programs are a more effective means of protecting children. The government “will argue that parents are too stupid to use filters,” said ACLU attorney Chris Hansen in his opening statement. “It’s an insulting argument and it’s wrong.” The plaintiffs in ACLU v. Gonzales, which include Salon.com and Nerve.com, warned that the law could be used to criminalize sexual health information, erotic literature, and news photographs of naked prisoners tortured at Abu Ghraib, the Associated Press reported October 24. They also argued that the term “community standards” was too vague. “As a parent, I know that what’s fine for my daughter may not be appropriate even for some of her friends,” testified Salon Editor in Chief Joan Walsh. Government attorney Eric Beane said that while it was tempting to defer to families on what was appropriate for children, filters used in private homes did not work. “The evidence will show that a shocking amount of pornography slips through to children,” he said. The Justice Department subpoenaed information from at least 34 internet service providers, search companies, and filtering software firms in preparation for the case. Google defied the order and won a partial victory in federal court last March. The nonjury trial in Philadelphia before Senior District Judge Lowell Reed is expected to last for about a month. Posted October 27, 2006. |
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