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Adult Film/How does Joe Francis get away with it?

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Expert: - 3/25/2009


Question
We all know that the laws concerning pornography are very strict, and we all know that that the only place to legally produce adult films in the US is in the State of California. My question is, how does Joe Francis from Girls Gone Wild keep getting away with what he's doing? He's traveling all around the country and picks up DRUNK (often under 21) college girls with no STD testing and most likely only one piece of ID. How is it that his operation isn't getting shut down? I know he already did time for filming one underage girl.

Answer
First off, if you're referring to the Girls Gone Wild video series, I would disagree that the content of these films could only be produced in CA.  Putting aside for the moment the argument that CA is the only state in the country where it's legal to produce sexually-explicit conduct, women bearing their breasts on camera would not fall under the same category of content that California's Freeman case addressed.

Aside from validating the talent's age  (which must be at least 18), there are no laws mandating STD testing (and, to my knowledge, his films don't involve actual sexual conduct, so I'm not sure why STD testing would be needed).

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Dan Pepper

Expertise

Lawyer representing adult industry businesses and entertainers, and can answer questions related to:

How to start an adult film business or adult website LEGALLY.

What laws to be concerned about with getting into the adult entertainment industry.

What terms and conditions do you need on your adult website.

How to comply with 18 USC 2257 - the federal record keeping requirements.

What forms and agreements do you need for models and crew.

How to deal with copyright and trademark laws.

Before asking your question, I recommend visiting adultwebsitelawyer.com and requesting a copy of the Top 6 Considerations of Starting an Adult Entertainment Business. You may find your question answered there.

I ALSO DO NOT ANSWER QUESTIONS FROM MALES INTERESTED IN STARRING IN ADULT FILMS.

Experience

I have been practicing law since 1994, and have represented numerous businesses and entertainers in the adult entertainment industry as the managing member of Pepper Law Group, LLC, at adultwebsitelawyer.com. My firm also operates 2257Sentry, one of the industry's leading 18 USC 2257 custodian record keeping services for producers of adult content.

Organizations
Free Speech Coalition, Frequent speaker at adult industry events including the Internext Expo and Exxxotica New York; interviewed in AVN Online; regular contributor to XBiz World

Publications
XBiz World AVN Online

Education/Credentials
BA in Political Science, JD (law degree)

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