- Joined
- Jun 18, 2018
The Illinois Child Pornography law states:Please elaborate.
"“A person commits child pornography who: (1) films, videotapes, photographs, or otherwise depicts or portrays by means of any similar visual medium or reproduction or depicts by computer any child whom he or she knows or reasonably should know to be under the age of 18 or any person with a severe or profound intellectual disability where such child or person with a severe or profound intellectual disability is.."
ILCS 5/11-20.1 (a)
“For the purposes of this Section, "child pornography" includes a film, videotape, photograph, or other similar visual medium or reproduction or depiction by computer that is, or appears to be, that of a person, either in part, or in total, under the age of 18 or a person with a severe or profound intellectual disability, regardless of the method by which the film, videotape, photograph, or other similar visual medium or reproduction or depiction by computer is created, adopted, or modified to appear as such. "Child pornography" also includes a film, videotape, photograph, or other similar visual medium or reproduction or depiction by computer that is advertised, promoted, presented, described, or distributed in such a manner that conveys the impression that the film, videotape, photograph, or other similar visual medium or reproduction or depiction by computer is of a person under the age of 18 or a person with a severe or profound intellectual disability.”
720 ILCS 5/11-20.1 (f)(7)
720 ILCS 5/11-20.1 (f)(7) is unconstitutional because it is similar to the wording in the Child Pornography Prevention Act of 1996 which was struck down by the US Supreme Court in Ashcroft v Free Speech Coalition (2002). The Illinois law doesn't only ban real child porn, but virtual child porn as well. In fact, section 720 ILCS 5/11-20.1 (f)(7) was deemed unconstitutional by the Illinois Supreme Court in 2003 and it was supposed to have been "severed" from the rest of the law (People of the State of Illinois v Kenneth Alexander 2003), but it wasn't and there is no footnote or reference that the section 720 ILCS 5/11-20.1 (f)(7) was deemed unconstitutional or "severed" by the court. This makes law enforcement believe that "virtual child porn" is illegal. In fact, a state trooper testified in my pre-trial that the Taylorville police had been trying for years to go after me for child porn. The child porn they were going after me for was virtual child porn.
Section ILCS 5/11-20.1 (a) is also unconstitutional because regardless of if it's real child porn or virtual child porn. the law states "A person commits child pornography who: (1) films, videotapes, photographs, or otherwise depicts or portrays by means of any similar visual medium or reproduction or depicts by computer any child whom he or she knows or reasonably should know to be under the age of 18" meaning any virtual child that looks like they are under the age of 18, would be illegal under this act. Again, making the police believe virtual child pornography is illegal.
Regardless of if you like it or not, virtual child pornography is legal. The reason it legal is how it created. Child porn (real child porn) does have redeeming value and is protected under the first amendment, what makes it illegal is how it is created. Child porn is illegal not because of the content, but how it is created - by harming real children. Virtual child porn is created without harming real child, and thus legal. (See Ashcroft - US Supreme Court 2002 citing Feber v New York 1982)


