Ohio State Rep. Mathews filed H.B. 556 in an effort to revise state law to create criminal liability for certain teachers and librarians for the offense of pandering obscenity. It’s an effort that will draw plenty of attention.
The proposal prohibits those individuals, with knowledge of the character of the material or performance involved, from doing any of the following:
*create, reproduce or publish any obscene material, when the offender knows that the material is to be used for commercial exploitation or will be publicly disseminated or displayed, or when the offender is reckless in that regard;
*promote or advertise for sale, delivery or dissemination; sell, deliver, publicly disseminate, publicly display, exhibit, present, rent, or provide; or offer or agree to sell, deliver, publicly disseminate, publicly display, exhibit, present, rent, or provide any obscene material;
*create, direct, or produce an obscene performance, when the offender knows that it is to be used for commercial exploitation or will be publicly presented, or when the offender is reckless in that regard;
*advertise or promote an obscene performance for presentation, or present or participate in presenting an obscene performance, when the performance is presented publicly, or when admission is charged;
*buy, procure, possess or control any obscene material with purpose to violate this section.
The bill includes an exception if the material disseminated or presented was for a bona fide medical, scientific, religious, governmental, judicial or other purpose, by or to a physician, psychologist, sociologist, scientist, health or biology teacher, faculty member, person pursuing bona fide studies or research, librarian other than a school librarian, member of the clergy, prosecutor, judge or another person having proper interest in the material or performance.
Any affected person guilty of pandering obscenity will be committing a fifth-degree felony. If the individual has previously been convicted of pandering obscenity, then it will become a fourth-degree felony.
You can read the legislation here.
