California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and Attorney General Jerry Brown petitioned the U.S. Supreme Court on Wednesday to reinstate a state law banning the sale or rental of violent video games to minors.
In February, the 9th U.S. Court of Appeals struck down the law as a free speech violation that could limit minors' access to other material under the guise of protecting children. The court said there are less restrictive ways, such as parental control, to prevent children from accessing violent video games.
The court also dismissed as unpersuasive the scientific studies linking violent video games to aggressive and anti-social behavior. The state Legislature passed the law in 2005, but it never took effect because the video game industry sued soon after Schwarzenegger signed the measure that would have barred sales and rentals to anyone under the age of 18. The governor and attorney general argued Wednesday that the same legal justifications for banning minors from accessing pornography can be applied to violent video games. |
