Originally Published at Forbes
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The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops has called on the federal government to “confront the ongoing harms wrought by the pornography industry,” which has experienced a surge in website traffic because of the coronavirus pandemic.
In an April 30 letter to Attorney General William Barr, the Conference urged the U.S. Department of Justice to enforce obscenity laws, investigate website owners for criminality, and to encourage state and local governments to crack down on the industry.
According to Patrick Trueman, a former Department of Justice lawyer who now heads the conservative anti-pornography National Center on Sexual Exploitation, the last federal obscenity case involving adult content happened in 2012.
“The Department of Justice in Obama’s administration didn’t initiate one case, and so far the Trump Administration has not initiated one either, said Patrick Trueman, president, and CEO of the National Center on Sexual Exploitation, in an interview. “Now, the porn industry thinks the barn door is open, and they can run wild.”
Some U.S. attorneys have told Trueman that they would be interested in pursuing obscenity cases. All they need is some encouragement from Barr, according to Trueman.
