FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. (AP) — A federal judge on Monday struck down key parts of an Arkansas law that would have allowed criminal charges against librarians and booksellers for providing “harmful” materials to minors.
U.S. District Judge Timothy Brooks found that elements of the law are unconstitutional.
“I respect the court’s ruling and will appeal,” Arkansas Attorney General Tim Griffin said in a statement to The Associated Press.
The law would have created a new process to challenge library materials and request that they be relocated to areas not accessible to children. The measure was signed by Republican Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders in 2023, but an earlier ruling had temporarily blocked it from taking effect while it was being challenged in court.
“The law deputizes librarians and booksellers as the agents of censorship; when motivated by the fear of jail time, it is likely they will shelve only books fit for young children and segregate or discard the rest,” Brooks wrote in his ruling.
A coalition that included the Central Arkansas Library System in Little Rock had challenged the law, saying fear of prosecution under the measure could prompt libraries and booksellers to no longer carry titles that could be challenged.
“This was an attempt to ‘thought police,’ and this victory over totalitarianism is a testament to the courage of librarians, booksellers, and readers who refused to bow to intimidation,” said Holly Dickson, executive director of the ACLU of Arkansas.
But supporters of the law, known as Act 372, say they will continue to fight for its implementation.
“Act 372 is just common sense: schools and libraries shouldn’t put obscene material in front of our kids,” Arkansas Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders said in a statement to KATV-TV. “I will work with Attorney General Griffin to appeal this ruling and uphold Arkansas law.”
The ruling comes as lawmakers in some conservative states are pushing for measures making it easier to ban or restrict access to books.
Laws restricting access to certain materials or making it easier to challenge them have been enacted in several other states, including Iowa, Indiana and Texas.
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This story removes a sentence in the penultimate paragraph of outdated material.
FILE - Nate Coulter, executive director of the Central Arkansas Library System (CALS), looks at a book in the main branch of the public library in downtown Little Rock, Ark., May 23, 2023. An increasing number of conservative states are pushing for measures making it easier to ban or restrict access to books. (AP Photo/Katie Adkins, File)
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TOP STORIES
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MIDEAST-WARS-THE-LATEST — A septuagenarian Israeli woman who was taken hostage during Hamas’s attack on southern Israel on 0ct. 7, 2023 has died. She was among the 250 hostages the Palestinian militant group took back into Gaza following the surprise attack that left about 1,200 people dead. SENT: 560 words, photo. With MIDEAST-WARS-UN-SYRIA-CRIMES — UN investigative team says Syria’s new authorities ‘very receptive’ to probe of Assad war crimes — SENT.
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MORE NEWS
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NATIONAL
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GUBERNATORIAL-POWERS-NORTH-CAROLINA — Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper and Gov.-elect Josh Stein have filed another lawsuit against a GOP-inspired law that strips away powers from several incoming Democratic state leaders. The newest suit filed focuses on a key provision in the law that moves state election board appointment powers from the governor to the state auditor. SENT: 670 words, photos.
BOOK-BAN-LIBRARIANS — A federal judge has struck down key parts of an Arkansas law that would have allowed criminal charges against librarians and booksellers for providing so-called “harmful” materials to minors. SENT: 350 words, photo.
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INTERNATIONAL
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TURKEY-FACTORY-EXPLOSION — An explosion at an armament factory in northwest Turkey left at least 12 dead and four injured. The blast occurred in the capsule production facility of the factory located in the province of Balikesir, according to the state-run Anadolu Agency. SENT: 100 words, photo, video.
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ENTERTAINMENT
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INDIA-OBIT-FILMMAKER-SHYAM-BENEGAL — Shyam Benegal,a renowned Indian filmmaker known for pioneering a new wave cinema movement that tackled social issues in the 1970s, has died after suffering from chronic kidney disease. He was 90. SENT: 440 words, photo.
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SPORTS
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Green Bay Packers wide receiver Jayden Reed (11) is pushed out of bounds near the goal line by New Orleans Saints cornerback Will Harris (5) and linebacker Pete Werner (20) during the first half of an NFL football game, Monday, Dec. 23, 2024, in Green Bay, Wis. (AP Photo/Matt Ludtke)
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A building from a wharf collapse floats in the ocean Monday, Dec. 23, 2024, in Santa Cruz, Calif. (Shmuel Thaler/The Santa Cruz Sentinel via AP)
Part of a wharf and other debris floats in the ocean Monday, Dec. 23, 2024, in Santa Cruz, Calif. (Shmuel Thaler/The Santa Cruz Sentinel via AP)
Fabio Ochoa, center, a former member of Cartel of Medellin, kisses a relative's hand upon his arrival at El Dorado airport, after being deported from the United States, in Bogota, Colombia, Monday, Dec. 23, 2024. (AP Photo/Fernando Vergara)
Luigi Mangione appears in Manhattan Criminal court for his arraignment on state murder and terror charges in the killing of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, Monday, Dec. 23, 2024, in New York. (Curtis Means/Pool Photo via AP)
Men gather outside closed businesses next to the Church of the Nativity, traditionally believed to be the birthplace of Jesus, on Christmas Eve, in the West Bank city of Bethlehem, Tuesday, Dec. 24, 2024. (AP Photo/Matias Delacroix)
Palestinians mourn over the bodies of five policemen killed Monday by an Israeli strike in Deir al-Balah, central Gaza Strip, Tuesday Dec. 24, 2024. According to witnesses at the scene, the policemen fired shots to prevent a group of bandits blocking the road from stealing aid from a truck. The Israeli army immediately struck the policemen after that.(AP Photo/Abdel Kareem Hana)
The sun rises over homes covering a hill of the West Bank city of Bethlehem, on Christmas Eve, Tuesday, Dec. 24, 2024. (AP Photo/Matias Delacroix)
