A three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 7th Circuit recently delivered a very disturbing ruling based on decades of legal precedent that have upended efforts to protect children from Child Sexual Abuse Material. The appeals court reluctantly upheld the dismissal of a criminal indictment for possession of AI-generated child pornography — though charges for producing and distributing the disturbing images were not dismissed.
The decision in U.S. v. Anderegg demonstrates the thorny problems caused by the law having to catch up with the rapid pace of new technology: in this case, AI-generated CSAM. But a quarter-century-old concurrence by Justice Clarence Thomas provides a possible constitutional path forward that could prevent the possession of this vile material.
