Sometimes you really don't need everything for your collection!

I found a few references to this case when I first started researching for this class and its one of those situations that leaves me kind of wobbly. Christopher Handley of Iowa is apparently a manga collector. He’s the kind of guy who has to have it all, the kind of collector who has literally thousands of books and magazines in his collection. He’s so in to collecting manga that he has it shipped to him from Japan. Enter a postal inspector who opens the package, decides the pictures in the manga depict people under thirteen in sexual acts and turns them over for prosecution. The Comic Book Legal Defense Fund described the beginning of the investigation like this:

Mr. Handley's case began in May 2006 when he received an express mail package from Japan that contained seven Japanese comic books. That package was intercepted by the Postal Inspector, who applied for a search warrant after determining that the package contained cartoon images of objectionable content. Unaware that his materials were searched, Handley drove away from the post office and was followed by various law enforcement officers, who pulled him over and followed him to his home. Once there, agents from the Postal Inspector's office, Immigration and Customs Enforcement Agency, Special Agents from the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation, and officers from the Glenwood Police Department seized Handley's collection of over 1,200 manga books or publications; and hundreds of DVDs, VHS tapes, laser disks; seven computers, and other documents. Though Handley's collection was comprised of hundreds of comics covering a wide spectrum of manga, the government is prosecuting images appearing in a small handful.


This is where the disconnect between what’s acceptable for publication in Japan and the U.S. comes in to play, along with the knowledge of the person who’s doing the looking. Some people see obscenity, some people don’t.


It’s just a case that makes me kind of sad, I am interested in the fact that Neil Gaiman weighed in and has been helping the guy pay for his defense (along with the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund). I think in many ways Gaiman is right, if we judge all graphica by the same standards that were used here, lots of people would be in trouble. Especially since the wording of the law is so open to interpretation. From what I can tell this could be especially troubling for manga, where because of the artistic style any number of characters could appear to be under the age of thirteen.


I understand that people want to protect children, but this sounds like a case that got out of hand. Do I think that Chris Handley showed poor judgment in what he chose to buy? Yes. Do I think he and the federal government should have spent the last four years wrangling over this? No. It just makes me sad. I understand why Mr. Handley chose to plead out at this point, I’m sure six months in jail is preferable to this continuing in court. I can’t imagine risking another five years of my life if convicted.


What Handley’s lawyer has to say:
http://www.tcj.com/news/christopher-handley%E2%80%99s-attorney-comments-on-his-case

Other articles and commentaries on the topic:

http://www.wired.com/threatlevel/2010/02/obscene-us-manga-collector-jailed-6-months/#ixzz0hFqjFe1v

http://www.cbldf.org/pr/archives/000372.shtml

http://www.cbldf.org/pr/archives/000416.shtml

http://www.wired.com/threatlevel/2009/05/manga-porn/

http://otakureview.today.com/2008/12/11/the-case-against-christopher-handley/