Computer-generated "child porn" trial marks a first for Japan

This past July, the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department's Youth Protection Section announced that it arrested a 52-year-old man from Gifu on suspicion of violating the Child Pornography Law, in what it trumpeted as the first "exposure of computer graphic child pornography" nationwide.

The suspect was a graphic designer and he had allegedly drawn a number of computer graphic child porn images based on nude photo books of under-age teenage girls since late 2009. What's more, he sold his image collection to a man from Shimane Prefecture, which led to his arrest.

During his first trial hearing, he offered a rebuttal of the accusations, saying the graphics were produced by his own imagination and that his photo collection was "reference material."

At the trial, he stood squarely against the prosecutors, maintaining his innocence and stating that computer graphics are not child porn. If found innocent, the case could establish a precedent that would legalize "virtual child porn." On the other hand, a guilty verdict could have major ramifications for content providers, artists or graphic designers who could be charged with child porn offenses for their virtual creations.

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