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Kansas Latest State to Introduce Violent Video Games Bill

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on February 22, 2006 - 5:28am.
Topeka, Kan. - Kansas has become the latest state to introduce legislation that would ban the sale of violent video games to minors. The Kansas House Democrats introduced the Child Protection from Violent Video Games Act, which has the support of Kansas Gov. Kathleen Sebelius. Judges have routinely overturned similar laws passed in California, Michigan, Washington, Illinois, St. Louis County and the city of Indianapolis, ruling the bans to be unconstitutional restrictions on First Amendment free speech protections.
tags: Games | Bill | Kansas | Introduce | Latest | Violent |

Utah Looks to Adds Violent Games to Obscenity Law, Ban Sales to Minors

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on February 16, 2006 - 8:31am.
Salt Lake City, Utah - A bill that would include violent video games in the state of Utah's obscenity laws, and make it a felony to exhibit such games to minors, has passed in a committee and now heads to the Utah House for debate, the Utah Daily Herald reported. The bill would put the same legal test to violent games that applies to pornography; namely, that games are obscene if they are deemed so by community standards, and contain no serious literary, artistic, political or scientific value for minors. "This is a bill that identifies the effects that different media has on our children," said Utah Rep. David Hogue, a Republican from Riverton. The Entertainment Software Association, a video game industry trade group, said the bill was not needed. "More importantly, the bill will be challenged as unconstitutional," the ESA's Scott Sabey told the Daily Herald. "To plug violence into an obscenity statute won't work." The ESA has already successfully sued to have video game bans declared unconstitutional on free speech grounds in a number of states.
tags: Games | Minors | Violent | Utah | Obscenity Law | Ban Sales |

Federal Court Tosses California Ban on Violent Video Game Sales

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on January 3, 2006 - 8:18am.
San Francisco - A federal judge has blocked enactment of California's recently passed law that bans the sale of violent video games to minors, saying the law is an unconstitutional restriction on First Amendment free speech rights. The Dec. 21 ruling from U.S. District Judge Ronald Whyte follows actions from federal courts in Illinois and Michigan to block similar video game sales bans recently passed into law in those states. The courts have also struck down bans in Washington state, the city of Indianapolis and St. Louis County, although the Supreme Court has yet to take up the matter. Judge Whyte wrote in his ruling that "games are protected by the First Amendment," and cited other rulings that found research has not established a causal connection between video game and real-world violence. "For the sixth time in five years, Federal Courts have now blocked or struck down these state and local laws seeking to regulate the sale of games to minors based on their content," said Douglas Lowenstein, president of the video game trade group the Entertainment Software Association, which sued to have the laws overturned in California and the other states. "It is therefore time to look past legislation and litigation in favor of cooperative efforts to accomplish the common goal of ensuring that parents use the tools available to control the games their kids play."
tags: California | Video Game | Violent | Federal Court |

Violent Video Game Ban Stalls in California Assembly

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on June 3, 2005 - 2:42am.
San Francisco -- A bill in the California state Assembly that would have restricted the sale of violent video games to minors in the state has been shelved, Reuters reported on Friday. Authored by Assemblyman Leland Yee, the bill passed the Assembly's arts committee last month. "We've put it in the inactive file," Yee's aide Adam Keigwin told Reuters, adding that the bill did not have enough votes to pass the full Assembly. "Dr. Yee is committed to this issue, but he wants to build more support for this bill." Similar laws have been consistently struck down by a number of courts as unconstitutional on First Amendment free speech grounds.
tags: California | Video Game | Violent |

D.C. Mayor Backs Ban on Sale of Violent Video Games to Minors

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on February 3, 2005 - 3:32am.
Washington -- The mayor of Washington, D.C. and a majority of D.C. Council members want to ban the sale of violent and sexually explicit video games to minors in the District, The Washington Post reported on Thursday. A group of 12 council members, led by Adrian M. Fenty, intend to introduce legislation that would impose fines of up to $10,000 and threaten the loss of business licenses to retailers who violate the ban. "They are unbelievably misogynistic and geared toward making whoever is playing perpetuate the worst parts of our society," Fenty told The Post. Similar bans on the sale of mature games to minors in St. Louis, Indianapolis and Washington state have been defeated in the courts, while additional bans have been proposed in both Illinois and Michigan. "We oppose any government enacted restrictions on content as unconstitutional restraints on creative and artistic expression. Further, Federal Court rulings already struck down limitations like what Councilman Fenty introduced and the same fate awaits his proposal," said Douglas Lowenstein, president of the Entertainment Software Association, a video game industry trade group.
tags: Minors | Violent | Ban | Video Games | D.C | Mayor |

Illinois Gov. Proposes Ban on Sale of Violent, Sexually Explicit Games to Minors

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on December 16, 2004 - 11:07am.
Naperville, Ill. -- Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich on Thursday proposed legislation that would ban the distribution, sale, rental and availability of violent and sexually explicit video games to children under 18 in the state. While similar efforts to ban video game sales to minors by the State of Washington, City of Indianapolis and St. Louis County have been thwarted in the courts, Blagojevich said his legislation will narrowly define what constitutes a violent or sexually explicit game in order to pass federal court scrutiny. "There's a reason why we don't let kids smoke or drink alcohol or drive a car until they reach a certain age and level of maturity. That's just common sense," said Blagojevich. "And that same common sense should be applied to excessively violent and sexually explicit video games." Under the proposed laws, retailers would have to label such games themselves, and post signs explaining the ratings system. Failure to post such warnings would be punishable by a $1,000 fine, while violating the ban on sales to minors would be a Class A misdemeanor, carrying a penalty of up to one year in prison and a $5,000 fine.
tags: Minors | Violent | Ban | Illinois Gov | Sexually Explicit Games |

Calif. PTA Backs Bills Limiting Kids' Exposure to Violent Video Games

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on April 8, 2004 - 6:41am.
Los Angeles -- The California State Parent Teachers Association (PTA) on Thursday voiced its support for two proposed pieces of California state legislation that would restrict sales of violent video games to minors. The laws would require retailers to display "Mature"-rated games separately from other titles, and clearly display signs explaining game ratings, in addition to prohibiting sales or rental to minors. "AB 1792 will assist parents by prohibiting vendors from selling or renting harmful video games to children, and AB 1793 will assure parents that video games with excessive violence will be displayed in such a way as to protect children from easily viewing them in stores," said Pat Klotz, California State PTA vice president for community concerns.
tags: Games | Video | Violent | Calif. PTA |