Politics & Government

Porn-Watching at Library May Prompt Policy Changes

Trustees question whether restricting access to pornographic content would be a violation of rights.

One library patron's actions in viewing pornography on a public computer at the Montville Township Public Library not only elicited complaints from other patrons but also has prompted employees to question what they are legally able to do about it.

A subcommittee of the library's board of trustees met Thursday to discuss the incident that initiated concerns. More than one complaint has been lodged about the same person, a man, watching pornographic videos on the library computers.

In the most recent complaint, on April 8, a mother and her teenage daughter were walking past the screen the man was viewing and noticed what he was watching, which she also said was visible from the children's section. The mother reached out to the library director and mayor with her concerns.

Find out what's happening in Montvillewith free, real-time updates from Patch.

While the issue has surfaced recently, the library has been planning to move the computers away from the front entrance area for some time. Currently, no matter which computer a patron is using, the screen may be visible to others.

"There is no place to hide because we have everything in the middle of the library," Director Allan Kleiman said.

Find out what's happening in Montvillewith free, real-time updates from Patch.

But moving the computers would take at least six months, and Kleiman said he is looking for direction from the board on whether a policy should, or even could, be enacted to give employees grounds to stand on if they were to tell a patron not to view pornography on the computers.

Mayor Tim Braden noted that as a public library that receives some federal grant monies, the library cannot entirely restrict patrons from looking at pornography, or other sites they wish to view, as it would be considered restricting their rights. The current policy employs a filter that blocks sites with nudity, but the filter can be removed with permission.

"If a patron comes up and asks, if they're over 18, they'd like to have [the filter] turned off, you're obliged," Kleiman said.

When questioning the strength of the filter, committee member Robert Lefkowitz noted that the library's filter software is the same as that which is used by the schools and that it is possible still to get around it.

"Can kids in the high school do what people in this library can do?" Braden asked.

"Can they? Yes," Lefkowitz responded.

Despite the recent incidents, Kleiman said the library actually lost patrons who were visiting websites not condoned by the library after putting in place a policy where computer users must also be library cardholders. This also allows library staff to see the age of the person using the computer and makes it more clear what action can and should be taken, as the library staff members are able to prevent minors from viewing pornographic material under the Child Internet Protection Act.

Kleiman said libraries have changed so much in the past several decades and that they have generally become more lenient.

"Take the ['50 Shades of Grey'] book, which probably 30, 40, 50 years ago wouldn't be in a library. Now it's in every library," Kleiman said.

The committee discussed several possible solutions, including using filter screens that block viewing a screen from each side or creating an adult-only area of the library where patrons would have to be over 18 to use the computers. Ultimately, members agreed to continue discussion with the board as a whole and seek legal advice on what kinds of restrictions can be enforced without violating civil rights.

Braden said he felt it was the library's and township's responsibility to be more concerned with what other patrons, particularly children, are able to see on the screens.

"We need to sort out what our obligation is here," he said. "Is it to protect the First Amendment rights or to protect a child?"

Another possible solution that seemed unreasonable to all members would be to take computers out of the library altogether. But Kleiman said there is no point in offering a library without computers as they have become such an integral part of information-gathering.

"No one can protect everyone from everything," he said.


Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here