OLYMPIA — Public libraries’ use of Internet filters to block content does not run afoul of the state constitution, the Washington state Supreme Court ruled today.
In a 6-3 ruling, the majority said libraries have discretion about which Internet content to allow, just as they decide which magazines and books to offer.
“A public library can decide that it will not include pornography and other adult materials in its collection in accord with its mission and policies and, as explained, no unconstitutionality necessarily results,” wrote the majority, led by Chief Justice Barbara Madsen. “It can make the same choices about Internet access.”
Justices Susan Owens, Charles Johnson, Mary Fairhurst and Gerry Alexander signed on in agreement.
Justice Jim Johnson wrote a separate opinion, agreeing with the majority conclusion but saying the focus of the reasoning should be on scarcity of resources that libraries deal with, which in turn allows them to filter materials they obtain for their collections.
The majority said libraries, while not completely removing Internet filters, can provide access to individual websites containing constitutionally protected speech if requested by an adult.
A blistering dissent by Justice Tom Chambers argued the ruling restricts constitutionally protected speech.
Chambers, joined by Justices Richard Sanders and Debra Stephens, said censoring material on the Internet is not the same as declining to purchase a particular book.
“It is more like refusing to circulate a book that is in the collection based on its content,” he wrote.
The case was sparked by a lawsuit filed by the American Civil Liberties Union of Washington in 2006 against the five-county North Central Regional Library District in Eastern Washington. U.S. District Court in Spokane asked the state Supreme Court to review the case.
The case will now go back to federal court, to be decided under the guidelines determined by the high court.
The district has 28 branch libraries in Chelan, Douglas, Ferry, Grant and Okanogan counties.
The ACLU represented three library users and the pro-gun Second Amendment Foundation, arguing the district should be ordered to provide unblocked access to the Internet when adults request it.
The plaintiffs include a Ferry County woman who wanted to do research on tobacco use by youth; a professional photographer blocked from using YouTube and from researching art galleries and health issues; and an Okanogan man unable to access his blog, as well as information relating to gun use by hunters.
The Bellevue-based Second Amendment Foundation contends the library district blocked online access to Women &Guns, a magazine it sponsors covering topics such as self-defense and recreational shooting.
Libraries that receive money for Internet access under two specific federal programs are required to have the ability to block minors from seeing pornography and other sites deemed harmful.
The North Central Regional Library District, which does receive federal money, has filters also block content about computer hacking, gambling and personal ads on Craigslist, among others.
Chambers wrote that the entire filter should be removed if requested by an adult patron, because the state “has no interest in protecting adults from constitutionally protected materials on the Internet.”
“Concerns that a child might see something unfortunate on the screen must be dealt with in a less draconian manner,” he wrote.
The case is Sarah Bradburn v. North Central Regional Library District, No. 82200-0.
On the Net:
Supreme Court of Washington: www.courts.wa.gov
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