School librarians in Ohio could face felony charges if kids access 'obscene' material

A new Ohio bill would allow prosecutors to charge school librarians with a felony if children access an "obscene" book or movie.

Current Ohio law prohibits selling and distributing "obscene materials," which include depictions or descriptions of sex, masturbation, nudity, bestiality, "extreme or bizarre" violence or "human bodily functions of elimination." The law has exceptions for doctors, scientists, prosecutors and a slew of other professions.

House Bill 556, introduced last week, would eliminate an exception for school librarians and some teachers. That means they could face a fifth-degree felony punishable by up to one year in prison and a $2,500 fine.

Rep. Adam Mathews, R-Lebanon, said the change is needed to protect students from "types of works that really have no place to be in a K-12 library." Mathews said constituents had reached out to him about their concerns but didn't cite a particular incident or book. The West Virginia Legislature is considering a similar law.

The Mentor school board recently rejected an attempt to remove two books from schools' shelves, Ideastream Public Media reported. One book in the high school library was “Empire of Storms,” a fantasy novel in Sarah J. Maas' "Throne of Glass" series that includes sex scenes. The second was “Right Now!: Real Kids Speaking Up for Change,” which includes short profiles of environmental and transgender activists.

Mathews said his bill isn't specifically targeting LBGTQ books and movies. "An R-rated movie shouldn't be accessible to second graders regardless of what type of coupling there is in the R-rated movie," he said.

If Mathews' bill becomes law, some teachers would be protected from any charges. Health and biology teachers could continue instructing on sex education. Art teachers could share images of Michelangelo's David. College professors and public library employees would not be affected by the new bill.

"We are concerned with the vagueness of the bill and the ability for it to be weaponized by bad faith actors who are focused on attacking public schools and libraries, not on protecting children, said Ohio Federation of Teachers President Melissa Cropper. "We also question whether there is a need for this new bill or if existing laws can address the concerns behind HB 556."

She said the organization has not taken a position on the bill.

"Our libraries are 'open to all' so we have materials for everyone and ensure they have access to information," said Michelle Francis, executive director of the Ohio Library Council. "Parents should play a role in their own child's reading, but parents should not be making decisions for other people's children or dictating what books other people's children are allowed to read."

Still, those who teach English or other subjects could run afoul of this new law if they cross the line from spicy to obscene.

"Spicy is different from obscene," Mathews said. "Obscene is a significantly higher bar than spicy."

Jessie Balmert is a reporter for the USA TODAY Network Ohio Bureau, which serves the Columbus Dispatch, Cincinnati Enquirer, Akron Beacon Journal and 18 other affiliated news organizations across Ohio.

This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Ohio school librarians may face felony charges over 'obscene' material