Federal judge strikes down anti-porn law, citing protected speech

U.S. District Judge David Ezra struck down a Texas law Thursday that legally required pornographic websites to verify users were over 18. Ezra ruled the measure infringes on the First Amendment guarantee of free speech. Unlike traditional age verification methods through self-reporting, legislators want to issue digital IDs that would be used to enter age-restricted content. Louisiana has successfully implemented a digital government identification system in the U.S., using an app that verifies a user’s age every time a Louisiana IP address visits a restricted site.

What about Utah? The adult industry coalition that sued Texas also filed a lawsuit against Utah’s version of the law, which U.S. District Judge Ted Stewart threw out last month because he did not have the jurisdictional power to hear the case. Multiple studies have shown correlations between viewing pornography and the development of sexually aggressive behavior. A British study found that over 60 percent of 11- to 13-year-olds had been accidentally exposed to porn online. 

Dig deeper: Read Elizabeth Russell’s report in WORLD Magazine on Louisiana’s digital identification app.