Sec. 17.
(1) A person shall not knowingly disseminate to a minor an ultra-violent explicit video game that is harmful to minors. Except as provided in subsections (2) and (3), a person who violates this subsection is responsible for a state civil infraction and may be ordered to pay a civil fine of not more than $5,000.00.
(2) A person who violates subsection (1) and who has 1 prior determination of responsibility under this section is responsible for a state civil infraction and may be ordered to pay a civil fine of not more than $15,000.00.
(3) A person who violates subsection (1) and who has 2 or more prior determinations of responsibility under this section is responsible for a state civil infraction and may be ordered to pay a civil fine of not more than $40,000.00. In imposing a fine under this subsection, the court shall consider the scope of the defendant's commercial activity in disseminating ultra-violent explicit video games to minors.
History: Add. 2005, Act 108, Eff. Dec. 1, 2005
Constitutionality: In Entertainment Software Association v Granholm, F Supp (2006), the United States district court for the Eastern District of Michigan, Southern Division, permanently enjoined enforcement of an act regulating sexually explicit and ultra-violent video games as violating free speech rights and the due process requirement that a law be sufficiently definite to provide notice of the conduct prohibited that are granted in the First and Fourteenth Amendments to the United States Constitution.
Last modified: October 10, 2016