[HISTORY: Adopted by the Mayor and Council of the Borough
of Swoyersville 4-7-1975 by Ord.
No. 6-1975. Amendments noted where applicable.]
Any person who, with knowledge of the character and content,
either sells, gives away, lends, distributes, exhibits, shows or transmutes,
or offers to sell, give away, lend, distribute, exhibit, show or transmute,
or has in his possession with intent to sell, give away, lend, distribute,
exhibit, show or transmute to another, or who otherwise knowingly
offers for gift, sale or distribution any obscene picture film, show
or other presentation, which may or may not require mechanical or
other means to be transmuted into auditory, visual or sensory representation
of such character, shall be guilty of a summary offense and, upon
conviction thereof, shall be sentenced to pay a fine not exceeding
$300 and the costs of prosecution, and in default of the payment of
such fine and costs may be sentenced to imprisonment in the Luzerne
County Prison for not more than 30 days.
No person shall knowingly exhibit upon any private property
or at or near any public street or highway or in any other place within
the view of adults or minors passing on any public street or highway
any obscene motion-picture film, show or other presentation which
may or may not require mechanical or other means to be transmuted
into auditory, visual or sensory representations of such character;
and any person doing so shall be guilty of a summary offense and,
upon conviction thereof, shall be sentenced to pay a fine not exceeding
$300 and the costs of prosecution, and in default of the payments
of such fine and costs may be sentenced to imprisonment in the Luzerne
County Prison for not more than 30 days.
No person may, with knowledge of the character or content, exhibit,
show or project a motion-picture film, show or other presentation,
which in whole or in part depicts nudity, sexual conduct or sadomasochistic
abuse, so that it may be viewed by minors or any other persons from
public property or private property not under the control of the person
exhibiting, showing or projecting such motion-picture film, show or
other presentation; and any person doing so shall be guilty of a summary
offense and, upon conviction thereof, shall be sentenced to pay a
fine not exceeding $300 and the costs of prosecution, and in default
of the payments of such fine and costs may be sentenced to imprisonment
in the Luzerne County Prison for not more than 30 days.
Whoever knowingly participates in, supports or in any way aids
in the exhibition, showing or projection of an obscene motion-picture
film or other type motion-picture film in violation of this chapter,
whether the same shall be a ticket seller, usher, manager, projectionist
or other such employee, agent, servant or workman, shall be guilty
of a summary offense and, upon conviction thereof, shall be sentenced
to pay a fine not exceeding $300 and the costs of prosecution, and
in default of the payment of such fine and costs may be sentenced
to imprisonment in the Luzerne County Prison for not more than 30
days.
Whoever being the owner of any premises or having control thereof
knowingly permits within or on said premises the exhibition, projection
or showing of any motion-picture film, show or presentation in violation
of this chapter shall be guilty of a summary offense and, upon conviction
thereof, shall be sentenced to pay a fine not exceeding $300 and costs
of prosecution, and in default of the payment of such fine and costs
may be sentenced to imprisonment in the Luzerne County Prison for
not more than 30 days.
Whoever knowingly advertises or accepts for advertisement any
motion-picture film, show or other presentation, the exhibition, showing
or projection of which would be in violation of this chapter, shall
be guilty of a summary offense and, upon conviction thereof, shall
be sentenced to pay a fine not exceeding $300 and costs of prosecution,
and in default of the payment of such fine and costs may be sentenced
to imprisonment in the Luzerne County Prison for not more than 30
days.
For the purposes of this chapter, all three of the following
elements are required to establish obscenity:
A.
The average person applying contemporary community standards must
find that the work taken as a whole appeals to the prurient interest.
B.
The film must depict or describe patently offensive representations
or descriptions of sexual conduct, such as ultimate sexual acts, normal
or perverted, actual or simulated, real or animated, and/or patently
offensive representations or descriptions of masturbation, excretory
functions and/or lewd exhibition of the genitals; descriptions or
representations of acts of fellatio, cunnilingus, whether the same
involves persons real or animated, animals or combinations of individuals
real, animated and/or animals.
C.
The work taken as a whole lacks serious literary, artistic, political
or scientific value.
As used in § 63-3 of this chapter, the following terms shall have the meanings indicated:
The showing of the human male or female genitals, pubic area
or buttocks with less than a fully opaque covering, or the showing
of a female breast with less than a fully opaque covering of any portion
thereof below the top of the nipple, or the depiction of covered male
genitals in a discernibly turgid state.
Flagellation or torture by or upon a person clad in undergarments,
a mask or bizarre costume or the condition of being fettered, bound
or otherwise physically restrained on the part of the one so clothed.
In addition to the examples hereinbefore set forth, acts
of masturbation, homosexuality, sexual intercourse or physical contact
with a person's clothed or unclothed genitals, pubic area, buttocks
or, if such person is a female, breasts.
