Oregon Supreme Court rules that simply viewing child pornography on the Internet isn't illegal

The Oregon Supreme Court ruled today that it's not a crime to look at child pornography while surfing the Internet if none of the images are purposefully downloaded, printed out or paid for. The high court said that while some states have specifically outlawed "viewing" child pornography, Oregon lawmakers only did so if someone pays for it. What's more, the court ruled that simply looking at photos on a website does not mean a person "possessed" the photos.

source: Article 'Oregon Supreme Court rules that simply viewing child pornography on the Internet isn't illegal' by Aimee Green; www.oregonlive.com/pacific-northwest-news/index.ssf/2011/01/oregon_supreme_court_rules_that_simply_viewing_child_pornography_on_the_internet_isnt_illegal.html; OregonLive.com; Updated: 7 January 2011; 6 January 2011