Is sexting (sending nude or semi-nude photos of oneself through one's cell phone) by a minor constitutionally protected free speech? Is it child pornography or some other sort of criminal behavior? Several sexting cases have arisen in recent years. One such case has reached the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit, located in Philadelphia. Oral arguments began today.
A few years ago, a group of teenagers at a Scranton, PA area high school were caught with nude pictures of themselves and other students on their cell phones. The area district attorney at the time, George P. Skumanick, threatened the students with felony charges of producing child pornography unless they attended special sex education classes, went on probation, and submitted to random drug tests. Thirteen of the students complied; three others challenged Skumanick, with help from the ACLU. The photos at issue in the case contain images of two of the girls from the waist-up wearing training bras, and the other girl coming out of the shower nude from the waist-up.
The ACLU, in its original complaint, claimed Skumanick's actions were a form of unconstitutional retaliation against the children who did not want to be bullied into participating in his "re-education" program. The U.S. District Court judge in Scranton agreed and enjoined Skumanick from charging the three teens with any crimes. All documents related to the case, including the original complaint and both party's appellate briefs may be found on the ACLU website here.
Related news stories:
Philadelphia Inquirer article from today
Video and article from WNEP news in Scranton/Wilkes-Barre
Statements issued from the ACLU concerning the case
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