ESA Suing Michigan Over Violent Games Law

Concerned about the vagueness in the law’s phrasing, the Entertainment Software Association will try to block the state’s action.

Michigan Governor Jennifer M. Granholm today signed SB 416 into law, which could impose very heavy penalties on people caught selling or renting violent games to minors. In fact, a manager of a business that lets a minor play a violent game could face more than 3 months in jail and a fine of $25,000. The game industry is suing to overturn the law.

Unlike the pending CA law, however, Granholm’s violent games law would enforce much stricter penalties. A retailer caught selling a violent game to a minor would be subject to a fine of up to $5,000, which is five times the amount of AB 1179’s fine. Furthermore, repeat offenders could be liable for fines up to $15,000 on the second infraction and as high as $40,000 after that. And, any person who pretends to be a minor’s parent or legal guardian in order to get the game for that minor will face up to 93 days in jail and/or a fine of up to $15,000. The manager of a business that lets a minor view or play a violent game also would face up to 93 days in jail and/or a steeper fine of up to $25,000.

Apparently the law does not take into account the ESRB rating system to determine which games are affected. SB 416 defines an ultraviolent explicit video game as one that "continually and repetitively depicts extreme and loathsome violence" such as "real or simulated graphic depictions of physical injuries or physical violence against parties who realistically appear to be human beings, including actions causing death, inflicting cruelty, dismemberment, decapitation, maiming, disfigurement, or other mutilation of body parts, murder, criminal sexual conduct, or torture."

The vagueness of the law’s phrasing, however, concerns the ESA because "retailers will have no objective way to determine whether they are in compliance and game developers will not know if their products would be covered."

And, as with similar legislation, the ESA believes that the MI law would be considered a violation of the First Amendment. "If this law is implemented, it will not only limit First Amendment rights for Michigan’s residents, but, by virtue of its vagueness, it will also create a huge amount of confusion for Michigan’s retailers, parents, and video game developers," commented Douglas Lowenstein, president of the ESA, the trade group representing U.S. computer and video game publishers. "I’m confident the court will affirm our position given the rulings on similar statutes in other jurisdictions; indeed, the facts, the science, the law, and the U.S. Constitution have not changed since those decisions were handed down."

 "In 2004, the average game buyer was 37 years old and the average game player was 30," Lowenstein said. "Knowing this, our industry creates a wide range of content for a diverse consumer audience, just as other entertainment industries do. And, it’s illogical that video games would be treated more harshly than R-rated movies or music CDs with parental warning labels, both of which can be legally viewed and sold to minors. How can you treat a video game based on James Bond any different than a book or movie based on the same subject matter?"

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