The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals overturned the constitutionality of a portion of the Child Pornography Prevention Act.
The section in question made it a crime to possess digital images or videos of people who "appear" to be minors engaging in sexual acts, even if the participants are youthful-looking adults who appear to be under the age of consent.
In a 2-1 ruling on Friday, the court said, "We find that the phrases 'appears to be' a minor, and 'convey the impression' that the depiction portrays a minor, are vague and overbroad and thus do not meet the requirements of the First Amendment."
The court said the balance of the Child Pornography Prevention Act, or CPPA, was constitutional when those phrases are removed. The U.S. government now has the option of requesting an "en banc" hearing on the issue, in which 11 judges would consider the case.
The decision overturns an August 1997 ruling by U.S. District Judge Samuel Conti, who said fake child porn could be regulated because of the "the devastating" effect it has on society and on the well-being of children.
The Free Speech Coalition, the trade association representing the adult entertainment industry, had challenged the law, saying it was overly broad and could have criminalized the distribution of movies such as "Return to Blue Lagoon," a controversial 1980s movie that depicted teenagers involved in sexual activity. The ACLU supported the coalition in its efforts to get that part of the CPPA overturned
"I'm ecstatic," said Jeffrey Douglas, chairman of the Free Speech Coalition's board of directors. "What's exciting is it's a validation of a very important First Amendment right."
