Breaking
News!
FSC
Brokers Deal
June 23, 2005
It was
a tense day for those in the adult industry as today's deadline
to comply with the new Title 18 U.S.C. § 2257 revisions was
unfortunately a reality. As I spoke with the Free Speech Coalition's
Staff, you could hear the seriousness of what was taking place
behind closed doors today in Denver, Colorado.
At least
a small sigh of relief could be heard from many in the adult
industry (including sex educators, adult retailers and web
masters) who are members of the Free Speech Coalition (FSC,)
as they have now been shielded through a new deal temporarily.
The FSC
has brokered a deal with the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ)
that prevents enforcement of the recently revised regulations
pertaining to Title 18 U.S.C. § 2257 against its members until
a federal district court rules on the FSC’s request for a
preliminary injunction.
The injunction
hearing is scheduled for August 8 & 9, 2005 and applies
only to those who are members of the FSC by 2 p.m. Pacific
time on June 25, 2005. Therefore, any adult retailer who
is not a member of the Free Speech Coalition is on their own
and expected to comply with May 2005's revisions.
Free Speech
Coalition attorney Michael Gross, who was involved in the
negotiations along with Paul Cambria, H. Louis Sirkin, Arthur
Schwartz, Roger Wilcox, Reed Lee, Jeffrey Douglas, and Jennifer
Kingsley had this to say to AVN
(Adult Video News) “The agreement, as it stands right now,
is that [the government] will not do any inspections and will
not initiate any cases until 30 days after the injunction
hearing or the judge rules, whichever comes first.”
How Does
The Deal Work Specifically?
If you’re
in violation of a law as of today, they can prosecute you,
but the DOJ will have to wait until the court issues an injunction
ruling.” Paul Cambria, a veteran First Amendment attorney
said “This
is a set of complex constitutional issues, and we really don’t
anticipate a decision [by the court] sooner than 30 days after
the hearing. We don’t know exactly how long it will take;
it could take much longer. I would not be surprised if it
took several months because of the complicated nature of the
issues involved.” Meanwhile,
those who are not FSC members may still be inspected and
prosecuted.
The deal
brokered today is bound by the Rules of Civil Procedure and
state that only the plaintiffs are covered by the decisions.
Michelle Freridge, executive director of the FSC said to AVN
News “It’s not our intention to leave anybody out in the cold
and we’re doing the best we can to protect the industry, but
we have to follow the law because that gives us the best shot.”
Under
the new deal, the DOJ will have to submit the name of any
adult retailer or webmaster whose records it wishes to inspect
under the 2257 regulations to a special master (typically
a retired judge appointed by the court and agreed upon by
both parties). In turn, the special master, who will receive
the FSC membership list on June 29, will tell the government
who it can and cannot inspect based on that list.
What Else
Was Addressed?
An example
of what else was addressed today were the regulations’ requirement
that foreign actors must provide a U.S.-issued document proving
their age for all content manufactured between 1995 and now.
The government already has agreed, in documents submitted
thus far, that the requirement is over the top. Instead, it
will require U.S.-issued documentation for foreign actors
only from June 23, 2005, forward.
Joe Obenberger,
a First Amendment attorney said to AVN, “The government would
not have entered into this unless the government thought they
had something to gain by bypassing a hearing, and I think
we all know the government avoided embarrassment,” he says.
“They would have lost, and they would have lost big. This
provides a sure protection in the short term for FSC members.”
Free Speech
Coalition Membership Soaring
As you
can imagine the FSC headquarter phones are ringing off the
hook with applications from prospective new members. It is
advised that if you are not able to get through initially,
that you keep trying as they continue to need all the support
they can get to tackle this important and historical battle
for sexual freedoms and the constitutional rights of American
citizens.
