New law aims to curtail access to video game carnage
ALBANY -A bill enacting new restrictions on violent video games has been signed into law by Gov. David A. Paterson — a move civil libertarian groups say will be challenged in court on free speech grounds.
The measure was among three dozen the governor signed into law Tuesday. Another law expands civil orders of protection access to include alleged abusers not related to the victim. And another provides for automatic revocation of state teaching licenses by educators convicted of sex crimes.
The video game legislation came together during the final 24 hours of the legislative session in June.
It requires that games sold by retailers include the industry’s voluntary rating board. It also requires game consoles to include special features by 2010 that enable parents to lock out certain kinds of games based on content or rating. And the legislation creates a state advisory council to study the connection.
The bill also creates a state Advisory Board on Interactive Media and Youth Violence to make recommendations regarding the relationship between youth violence and video games.
Backers say the legislation is needed to help assist parents in ensuring their children cannot so easily get their hands on some of the more violent video games on the market today.
Critics say the industry already has a rating system that works and most gaming consoles have locking systems for parents. They add that the new advisory council has a mandate so broad it could trample on First Amendment rights of game users. In addition, the new commission is akin to forming state panels to make recommendations on the content of newspapers or movies.
They also say similar laws adopted in other states have already been struck down by the courts, and the state will be wasting money on lawsuits.
“Parents can do the job of parenting. I view this bill as political feel-good,” said Derek Hunter, executive director of Media Freedom Project, one of a half-dozen state and national groups that had urged Paterson to veto the bill.
Other bills signed by Paterson include new protections for residents of mental health facilities, including new standards determining child abuse or neglect in residential institutions and a specific ban on the withholding of food or water from residents of the facilities.
“The first duty of government is to provide a safe society for our residents to live, work and raise their families. These new laws will enhance the protections afforded to the citizens of this state and will address gaps in protection that have existed for years,” Paterson said in signing the package of bills Tuesday.
Also signed into law was a measure making it illegal to impersonate someone over the Internet. Its backers say sites such as MySpace and Facebook as well as instant messaging make it easy for people to impersonate others.
“Their intentions can range from harassment to identity theft. The problem of Internet impersonation is intensifying with the growing availability of personal data online, as well as the increase in social networking and dating sites,” a legislative memo in support of the bill states.
The law creates a new misdemeanor offense for impersonation via electronic means such as the Internet.
The governor also approved a measure making spectators at animal fights guilty of a crime. Another approved bill restores the discretion to discharge people from parole that the state Board of Parole held from 1930 to 1998. It permits the board to grant parole in certain cases to individuals who served an indeterminate sentence with a maximum of life in prison.
In 1998, people with such convictions were subject to mandatory lifetime parole after their release from prison.
“There is no indication that such mandatory lifetime supervision is necessary to promote public safety. Recidivism studies indicate that persons who have served long terms in prison are among the least likely to reoffend , ” states a legislative memo backing the measure.
