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Child Online Protection Act ("COPA") |
Case Type: |
Actual
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Exigence: |
On October 21, 1998, President Clinton signed into law the "Child Online Protection Act," which made it a crime to "make any communication" on the World Wide Web "for commercial purposes," if the communication "is available to any minor and . . . includes any material that is harmful to minors." Internet publishers who check for age (e.g. by demanding a credit card number before allowing access) are exempt from the statute. All others may be punished by fines of up to $50,000 and six months imprisonment per violation. The ACLU and others have filed suit claiming COPA is unconstitutional.
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Audience: |
The federal district court; and you, the general public.
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Possible |
For the full text of COPA and some of the legal documents, see:
In 1995, Congress passed and the president signed the Communications Decency Act ("CDA"), which also attempted to regulate "indecency" online. A year later, the Supreme Court declared this law unconstitional, in the case of ACLU v. Reno. (Warning: the case against the "CDA" and the case against the "COPA" have the same name: ACLU v. Reno., although they're totally separate lawsuits.) For information on the CDA, the controversy it provoked and the opinions of the Supreme Court, see:
Among older cases, the classic FCC v. Pacifica (1978) might also be relevant.
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Decision: |
As of summer, 2000, the appellate court had declared COPA unconstitutional. See the links above for a copy of the court's decision.
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Related |
Offense Internet Sex Commerce |
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Notes: |
None.
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For help
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Copyright © 1998 Jean Goodwin. All rights reserved. jeangoodwin@nwu.edu Last updated The Free Speech website, http://faculty-web.at.nwu.edu/commstud/freespeech/ |
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