Can a comic-book retailer be convicted of selling obscenity if he or she didn’t know a particular book was sexually explicit?
No. In cases in which sellers or distributors of obscenity are prosecuted, prosecutors must not only show that a work is obscene, but must also show that the seller or distributor was personally aware of the sexually explicit “character” of the offensive item, according to the Supreme Court’s ruling in Smith v. California. In Hamling v. United States, the Court ruled that the seller or distributor does not have to be aware the item is legally obscene. However, retailers should be aware that the presence of warning labels on explicit material can be evidence of knowledge of its character, as in the state case Texas v. Castillo.
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