(Indiana) Bill aims to enforce age limits on games
Measure calls for fines of up to $1,000 for sale or rental of adult-themed video games to minors
Selling or renting video games featuring beatings, strippers and other
adult content to minors could net a retailer more than the wrath of a
disapproving parent.
It also could mean a $1,000 fine under a bill that passed the Senate Economic Development and Technology Committee 5-2 on Monday.
The vote came after some clips of the games were shown to the committee -- complete with often obscene and racist language -- on the giant flat-panel monitor at the front of the Senate chamber, which normally is used to display lawmaker votes.
Sen. David C. Ford, the Hartford City Republican who authored Senate Bill 238 along with Sen. Vi Simpson, D-Ellettsville, said it was important for the committee to see the kinds of video games that the bill is trying to keep out of the hands of children.
Lobbyists for retail and video gaming industries opposed the proposal, saying similar attempts in other states have been struck down as unconstitutional. They include a November decision by the 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Chicago striking down an Illinois law as overly broad.
In 2001, Indianapolis lost its bid to be the first city in the nation to ban minors from playing violent video games in public arcades without parental consent, when the U.S. Supreme Court refused to hear the case.
Read the full article here...Mary Beth Schneider
February 20, 2007
Source: IndyStar.com