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Computer Law Review and Technology Journal

The Eighth Circuit Holds that a City Ordinance Restricting the Provision of Violent Video Games to Minors without Parental Consent is an Unconstitutional Violation of Free Speech: Interactive Digital Software Association v. St. Louis County, Missouri

Abstract

In Interactive Digital Software Association v. St. Louis County, Missouri, the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals held that a county ordinance, which prohibited the act of providing violent video games to minors without parental consent, was an unconstitutional violation of free speech. The plaintiffs-companies that create, sell, publish, rent, or distribute arcade and computer games and video game software to the public-were denied summary judgment at the trial level against the defendants-St. Louis County ("the County"), the County Executive, and the county's Chief of Police. Subsequently, on the court's own motion, the court dismissed the cause of action. The plaintiffs appealed and the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals reversed the judgment of the district court and remanded the case for entry of an injunction, holding that the video game ban was an unconstitutional abridgement of the First Amendment's protection of free speech. Consequently, the Court deprived the government of the power to regulate the sale and distribution of violent video games to minors and parents are currently left with the ultimate responsibility to monitor their children's video game use. With the growing body of research and statistical studies displaying the correlation between violent video games and the resulting aggressive behavior in minors, this issue is likely to come before the courts again, whether in the Eighth Circuit or another jurisdiction.

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