\nCALIFORNIA – A Concord woman is claiming that it is unconstitutional\nfor a public library to allow children to access the Internet\nwithout filtering software.
After two dismissals, the case of Kathleen R. v. City of Livermore\nhas moved to the state court of appeals.
Kathleen R., the plaintiff, is asking that the Livermore Library\ninstall the software so that her son will not be exposed to Web\nsites that could be obscene or harmful to minors. If the lawsuit\nis successful, public schools could be required to install filtering\nsoftware as well.
Ann Brick, an American Civil Liberties Union attorney representing\nthe library, said she expects oral arguments to occur in about\na year.
The current Livermore Library policy for Internet use warns\nparents that children may have access to controversial subjects,\nan ACLU press release said.
“The library’s policy is sensitive to both First Amendment\nconcerns and the concerns of parents,” Brick said in the\npress release. “It enables each family to be sure that its\nchildren use the Internet in a manner that is consistent with\nits own values without imposing those values on other families.”
California legislation that would require filtering on public\nlibrary computers is currently pending in the Senate Judiciary\nCommittee.\n