OAK CREEK, Wisc.—A local ABC News affiliate has reported that charges have been filed against an unnamed Oak Creek man for giving his son pornographic DVDs over the course of several years, beginning when the boy was in the fifth or sixth grade.
"The child told police that he was given five to 10 pornographic videos on DVD each week, and that his father would then want to discuss the videos with him," reported wisn.com. "The child told investigators that he 'watched about 100 movies' during the period outlined in the complaint."
The father is charged with exposing a minor to "harmful material," a felony that carries a maximum sentence of up to three years and six months in prison and a fine of up to $10,000.
The article does not indicate how authorities learned of the porn watching, where the boy's mom is, the types of movies the kid was given or whether there was any alleged damage to the boy caused by watching the movies. The man said he was trying to be a good dad, but also reportedly told investigators that he also knew letting his son watch the movies was wrong.
The details of this case may warrant charges, but they could also indicate intrusion by the state into the private activity between a father and his son. Assuming the former would be a big mistake.
Indeed, what are the exact rules for parents that would give them some assurance that the government will not intercede in their education of their own children and throw them in jail for "exposing" them to "harmful material?"
Where is that list of "harmful material" again? It seems to have gone missing.
