Utah lawmakers OK bill allowing lawsuit if kids are hurt by porn

Utah lawmakers have signed off on a proposal that would allow pornography distributors to be sued if a minor exposed to the material says they were hurt by it.

Calling porn addictive and harmful, bill sponsor Republican Sen. Todd Weiler told members of a House judiciary committee on Friday that this could help to protect children from this “filth.”

Weiler says if a 16-year-old was compulsively watching pornography, and the parents spent thousands of dollars to get him counseling, they could sue the distributor to get that money.

Last year, Weiler led an effort for Utah to declare pornography a public health crisis, contending that pornography is addictive and distorts children’s thinking about sex.

Defenders of pornography have argued that critics are pushing hyperbole and that sexually-explicit materials can be a safe outlet for some.