A prosecutor in Wyoming has refused to file charges over pornography found in a local library, claiming the state would be unable to prove there was the required intent for a child “to engage” in sex because the materials were distributed to the general public, including children.
WND previously had reported on the case in which two parents in Wyoming took a number of offending books in their library to the Campbell County sheriff’s office and filed a criminal complaint.
It seems while Wyoming law exempts schools and libraries from prosecution for displaying obscene material, the “law does not exempt them” if they encourage children to engage in sexual relations, which is a crime.
It’s a report from MassResistance that explained the situation in Gillette.
Because local lawyers employed by the county would have been required to defend the county employees involved, a special prosecutor from a neighboring county, Weston County, reviewed the evidence.
Now a report from Mass Resistance explains the case involving the books “This Book is Gay,” “How Do You Make a Baby,” “Doing It: Let’s Talk About Sex,” “Sex is a Funny Word” and “Dating and Sex: a Guide for the 21st Century Teen Boy” is over.
For now.
“Obviously, this is disappointing and outrageous but unfortunately not surprising given the horrible RINOs and leftists who are running things even in Wyoming,” the organization reported. “Our activists see this as just a speed bump. The Wyoming MassResistance parents in Campbell County are moving forward in this battle! We have much more to report soon.”
Parents Hugh and Susan Bennett had submitted copies of four of the books with their request that charges be filed under the state law that penalizes those to solicit “anyone less than the age of 14” to engage in sexual acts.
One book, “This Book is Gay,” had been checked out of the library so the parents submitted photocopies of offending pages.
Michael Stulken, a prosecuting attorney from neighboring Weston County, said the parents had failed to provide him information on that book so he could not bring any charge there.
The other books he excused by saying to “engage” requires “two separate actors,” but since the library was handing out the books to the “general public,” there was no “engagement.”
He also claimed the books really were not pornography because they “do not .. criminally describe sexual conduct in a patently offensive manner.” And, he said, “they may have scientific value.”
MassResistance explained, “The books (particularly This Book is Gay) clearly and unambiguously encourage and instruct children to engage in sexual and homosexual sex acts, and masturbation.”
Campbell County Attorney Mitchell Damsky described the books as “inappropriate for children and disgusting,” and said it was like giving “hard pornography to children.”
But Stulken disagreed, giving the questionable materials a free pass.
“The most outrageous part of his letter was that he purposefully neglected to investigate the worst of the five books, This Book is Gay. His excuse was that the book was “not delivered” to him,” the MassResistance report said.
“But that book was named as a part of the complaint, and photocopies of the pages were submitted. Had Stulken desired, he could have easily obtained the book from a number of sources. He could have also asked the library to send it to him when the person who checked it out returned it. It would appear that he saw the photocopies, and contrived this excuse to exclude it.”
The Bennetts had pointed out “This Book is Gay” teaches children how to participate in homosexual and lesbian acts, “How Do You Make a Baby” includes pornographic drawings, “Doing It: Let’s Talk About Sex” promotes “sexual pleasure for children,” “Sex is a Funny Word” coaches 8-year-olds to “be comfortable getting naked and being touched,” and “Dating and Sex: A Guide for the 21st Century Teen Boy” teaches how to enjoy pornography.
A statement from the ACLU revealed that leftist organization believes only “professional librarians” have the right to choose what material to present to children.
Jonathan G. Lange, a pastor of a church on the other side of Wyoming, wrote just at the same time at The Federalist about the problem facing parents.
Lange, the leader of the Wyoming Pastors Network, pointed out the American Library Association “recognizes no age limits on what children can access — either in print, video, audio, or online.”
He explained that means the ALA opposes restrictions on porn, citing filters on computers as well as the books, “Doing It,” “The V-Word” and “This Book is Gay.”
“Unless you read the above-named titles for yourself, you will likely not believe what unsuspecting children can encounter in your local library. These titles would be perfectly at home in the seediest ‘adult book store.’ Who but the most jaded parents would dream that a library might display them in the children’s section at the eye-level of your average seven-year-old?”
And the libraries?
He explained, “By attractive, kid-friendly displays, they invite curious children to read what your local newspaper editor is ashamed to print.”
He warned American libraries are turning the Constitution on its head.
“Every county and school district library in America could be indecently exposing children to explicit content. Most libraries endorse and subscribe to the ALA’s twisted version of the First Amendment. Through guidance such as the Library Bill of Rights, The Freedom to Read Statement, and the Freedom to View Statement, the ALA treats parents shielding the innocence of their own children as violators of the First Amendment,” he said.
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