Jacobson Vs. United States Supreme Court

Essay by tghoshehUniversity, Bachelor's March 2006

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Late in the evening on the night of February 22nd 1984, Keith Jacobson ordered two explicit magazines for his personal leisure. These two publications ordered were titled "Bare Boys 1" and "Bare Boys 2" from a California based adult novelty shop. Keith Jacobson claims is that he did not know that these two publications included pre-teen nudity of young boys which violated the provision of the Child Protection Act of 1984. Only ninety days after Jacobson received the illegally explicit magazines the law banned all types of pornography of underage children. What interests me the most of this Supreme Court Decision was the government originated entrapment that ultimately decided Jacobson's Guilt.

During the time the nude publications were ordered by Jacobson the act of viewing child pornographic material was permitted, or in Jacobson's case - not yet attended to. Subsequently, the Child Protection Act of 1984 made the acceptance of any mailing with sexually explicit children illegal.

When Agents found Jacobson's name on the bookstore mailing list, two Government agencies sent mail to him through five fabricated organizations and a phony pen pal, to investigate his willingness to break the law.

Receiving the fabricated government mailing for over two years, Jacobson eventually let into his personal explicit interest and ordered a bogus publication which would have included under age teenage boys involved in sexual activities. He was arrested after a controlled delivery of the magazine, but a search of his house revealed no materials other than those sent by the Government and the Bare Boys magazines.

During Jacobson's trial he pleaded entrapment and testified that he had been curious to know the type of sexual actions to which the last letter referred and that he had been shocked by the Bare Boys magazines because he had not expected to receive...