Hatch vows to rewrite porn law

WASHINGTON — After the Supreme Court on Tuesday struck down a ban that Sen. Orrin Hatch wrote against "virtual" child pornography, he vowed to rewrite and enact it again legally within new court guidelines.

Hatch, R-Utah, said he "will be studying the court's opinion to see exactly how we can craft new legislation to punish the sexual exploitation of children consistent with the court's decision."

In 1996, Congress passed Hatch's Child Pornography Prevention Act. It banned sexually explicit material that "appear(s) to be a minor" or that is advertised in a way that "conveys the impression" that a minor was involved in its creation.

That included use of computer-generated images, or use of adult actors acting as if they were minors.

Hatch argued at the time that it was needed because proving that actors in child pornography scenes were actually minors is often difficult, allowing pornographers to evade child pornography laws.

But legitimate moviemakers and others said it could preclude scenes in such award-winning, mainstream movies as "Traffic" (in which Hatch had a cameo appearance), "Lolita," "American Beauty" or some versions of "Romeo and Juliet."

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BORDER="1"> FACE="Verdana,Helvetica,Arial" SIZE="2">Additional information: FACE="Verdana,Helvetica,Arial" SIZE="2"> Related stories: Child porn on Web: Cancerous growth Excerpts from the Supreme Court's decision on virtual child pornography

The Supreme Court ruled 6-3 Tuesday that the ban in Hatch's law was overly broad and would "chill speech within the First Amendment's vast and privileged sphere."

Hatch said, "I am obviously disappointed but respect the court's pronouncement."

He added, "Child pornography and the exploitation of children continue to be a serious problem in our country and abroad. I am committed to using every effort to curtail, and hopefully stop, the sexual exploitation of children."