Department of Justice letter responding to the American Family Association
request for an investigation of CompuServe
U.S. Department of Justice
Criminal Division
Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section
310 Washington Center
1001 G Street NW
Washington, D.C. 20530
(202) 514-5760, FAX: 202-514-1793
April 29, 1996
Dear Mr. Trueman:
Your letters, dated April 1, and April 12, 1996, to Attorney General
Reno concerning potential violations of the Communications
Decency Act (CDA) by CompuServe, a division of H&R Block, Inc., has
been forwarded to the Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section
(CEOS), and we are happy to respond.
CEOS has referred your letter and accompanying materials to the
Federal Bureau of Investigation for further review. As you well
know, the Section has overseen and personally conducted
prosecutions of individuals and companies for the distribution of
child pornography and obscenity via computer, and we have been very
successful in this effort. Unfortunately, even as prosecutions and
investigations continue, individuals are constantly looking for
loopholes or alternative methods of distributing illegal material
or ways to harm children. Therefore, we are constantly, and with
the aid of federal law enforcement agents, reviewing the current
state of this activity to determine the best methods of
identifying, investigating, and prosecuting violators with the goal
of deterring similar conduct. Your information regarding
CompuServe is helpful in this regard and we appreciate your
bringing it to our attention.
With the passage of the CDA in 1996, we are turning our attention
to the distribution of indecency on the Internet. As you correctly
point out, the distribution of these materials has a deleterious
effect on minors. While current litigation on the
constitutionality of the CDA precludes certain actions until the
matter is resolved, rest assured that we will pursue all other
available options.
Please feel free to refer any additional information which you
consider relevant to this issue directly to us. We will review and
forward it to the appropriate federal investigative agency. We
hope this information is useful and we applaud your efforts on
behalf of children and families.
Sincerely,
Terry R. Lord
Acting Chief