Porn Industry would have Difficulty in Moving out of State

2/3/2012

Threats made by porn firms to leave the state of California after the Los Angeles City Council passed a measure mandating the use of condoms in porn films might be difficult since such filming is legal in only two states, namely, New Hampshire and California.

In a landmark 1988 case, a California Supreme Court ruling in effect legalized the making of adult films, which came at a time when VCRs gave some people the opportunity to watch explicit movies within the confines of their home.

The California Supreme Court ruling is the main reason why Los Angeles has become the center of the multibillion-dollar porn industry. The justices defended the film producers’ right to recruit anyone who wanted to act in sexually explicit films, making it hard for authorities to prosecute the producers of pornography on charges of enticing individuals to engage in prostitution.

In 2008, the highest court in the state of New Hampshire made a similar ruling. The state Supreme Court said in 2008 that a person recruiting talent for a porn movie should not be prosecuted under anti-prostitution statutes.

According to Michael Weinstein, the president of AIDS Healthcare Foundation, these court rulings are perhaps among the reasons why porn companies are staying in California.

However, according to Marc Randazza, a Las Vegas attorney whose clients include a porn firm, there is a possibility that porn firms in Los Angeles could transfer to Nevada.

Randazza said that he does not believe a Nevada district attorney would target porn filmmakers in a state that allows legalized prostitution in a number of areas.