Drivers in Louisiana soon may have to think twice before deciding to view pornographic movies in their vehicles.
After passing through the House Criminal Justice Committee unanimously, House Bill 640 will now come up for a vote in front of the full Louisiana House of Representatives.
The bill, by representatives Mickey Guillory, D-Eunice, Daniel Martiny, R-Metairie and Cedric Richmond, D-New Orleans, would make it “unlawful for any person to knowingly exhibit sexually explicit material in a motor vehicle on a public street, highway, public place, or any place open to public view knowing that the material is visible to the public from the motor vehicle.”
The bill defines “sexually explicit material” as any that displays “ultimate sex acts, normal or perverted, actual, simulated, or animated, whether between human beings, animals, or an animal and a human being,” or “the graphic depiction of sex, including but not limited to the visual depiction of sexual activity or nudity.”
Potential offenders of the new law as it is currently amended would face a maximum penalty of $500 and six months in jail for a first offense. On second offense, the perpetrator would face up to one year in jail and a $1,000 fine. Upon subsequent convictions, offenders would face the same maximum penalty as the second offense, but it would include a mandatory 10-day jail sentence without the benefit of probation, parole or suspension of sentence.
While the bill has a high probability of passing, it will most likely face immense legal scrutiny, said Craig Freeman, a University media law professor.
“The government would have to show an interest in protecting the welfare of minors,” Freeman said.
He said the courts would have to decide between First Amendment rights and the public welfare.
“The federal government has said it is OK to protect minors from indecent material,” Freeman said. “Historically, the government has said we are more interested in protecting minors than adults [First Amendment rights].”
Ultimately, Freeman said the legislation would most likely be upheld in court as the intrusion on the First Amendment is minimal and the government could show an interest in the benefit of the public welfare.
The creation of this bill comes in response to a growing trend of people using their in-car video players to view pornographic material.
In a March 18 article in The Reveille, Joseph Marino, a civil engineering sophomore, explained the attraction between drivers and pornography.
“I enjoy driving down the street, listening to a CD and watching porn,” Marino said in the article. “It’s fulfilling.”
Many students expressed different views than Marino and said they felt the law was needed.
“I think that’s a good law,” said Frances Haynie, a mass communication junior. “I wouldn’t want my children to see porn.”