''Castillo v. Texas'', (Tex. 2002) was a controversial

Texan Texas (, ; Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2020, it is the second-largest U.S. state by bo ...

court A court is any person or institution, often as a government institution, with the authority to adjudicate legal disputes between parties and carry out the administration of justice in civil, criminal, and administrative matters in accordance ...

decision in which Jesus Castillo, an employee of a

comic book A comic book, also called comicbook, comic magazine or (in the United Kingdom and Ireland) simply comic, is a publication that consists of comics art in the form of sequential juxtaposed panels that represent individual scenes. Panels are of ...

store in

Dallas, Texas Dallas () is the third largest city in Texas and the largest city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States at 7.5 million people. It is the largest city in and seat of Dallas County w ...

, was charged with two counts of "display of

obscenity An obscenity is any utterance or act that strongly offends the prevalent morality of the time. It is derived from the Latin ''obscēnus'', ''obscaenus'', "boding ill; disgusting; indecent", of uncertain etymology. Such loaded language can be use ...

", and convicted for one, after selling adult comics to an adult.

Background

The sales took place in late 1999, at which time Castillo was working as a clerk in ''Keith's Comics'', a store that had come under investigation for allegations of making obscene material accessible to minors. The store did in fact carry

pornographic Pornography (often shortened to porn or porno) is the portrayal of Human sexual activity, sexual subject matter for the exclusive purpose of sexual arousal. Primarily intended for adults,

material, but in a clearly marked, restricted section not accessible to underaged customers. During this time, a plainclothes

police The police are a constituted body of persons empowered by a state, with the aim to enforce the law, to ensure the safety, health and possessions of citizens, and to prevent crime and civil disorder. Their lawful powers include arrest and t ...

officer bought said materials from Castillo, leading to the arrest of Castillo and his undergoing a court trial some months later. The counts were over the sales of ''

Demon Beast Invasion is a manga series written and illustrated by Toshio Maeda, published by Wani Magazine. The series was adapted into a six-part original video animation of the same name in 1990, followed by in 1995. Plot Millions of years ago, Earth was ...

'' and '' Legend of the Overfiend'', both of which are

hentai Hentai is anime and manga pornography. A loanword from Japanese, the original term ( ) does not describe a genre of media, but rather an abnormal sexual desire or act, as an abbreviation of . In addition to anime and manga, hentai works exis ...

manga Manga (Japanese: 漫画 ) are comics or graphic novels originating from Japan. Most manga conform to a style developed in Japan in the late 19th century, and the form has a long prehistory in earlier Japanese art. The term ''manga'' is u ...

(pornographic Japanese comics). The two were set to be tried separately. The ''Demon'' trial ended with a guilty

verdict In law, a verdict is the formal trier of fact, finding of fact made by a jury on matters or questions submitted to the jury by a judge. In a bench trial, the judge's decision near the end of the trial is simply referred to as a finding. In Engl ...

, the prosecution's argument to the jury being based on the claim that "comics are for children" and that the item was therefore designed to appeal to children, and the fact that the store was across the street from an

elementary school A primary school (in Ireland, the United Kingdom, Australia, Trinidad and Tobago, Jamaica, and South Africa), junior school (in Australia), elementary school or grade school (in North America and the Philippines) is a school for primary ed ...

. Notably, the trial featured experts

Scott McCloud Scott McCloud (born Scott McLeod; June 10, 1960) is an American cartoonist and comics theorist. He is best known for his non-fiction books about comics: ''Understanding Comics'' (1993), '' Reinventing Comics'' (2000), and ''Making Comics'' (200 ...

and

Susan J. Napier Susan Jolliffe Napier (born October 11, 1955) is a Professor of the Japanese Program at Tufts University. She was formerly the Mitsubishi Professor of Japanese Literature and Culture at the University of Texas at Austin. She also worked as a visi ...

testifying for the defense. Castillo was sentenced to 180 days in jail (since suspended), a year's probation, and a $4,000 fine. The ''Legend'' trial was subsequently dropped. The case was appealed to the Fifth District Court of Appeals, where it was upheld in a split decision, and later on to the

Texas Court of Criminal Appeals The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals (CCA) is the court of last resort for all criminal matters in Texas. The Court, which is based in the Supreme Court Building in Downtown Austin, is composed of a Presiding Judge and eight judges. Article V of ...

as well as eventually to the

U.S. Supreme Court The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all U.S. federal court cases, and over state court cases that involve a point o ...

; both were denied. The case drew considerable controversy (and incredulity), especially

online In computer technology and telecommunications, online indicates a state of connectivity and offline indicates a disconnected state. In modern terminology, this usually refers to an Internet connection, but (especially when expressed "on line" or ...

. Public opinion was on Castillo's side, and the trial was widely considered absurd. The $4,000 for the fine was collected via fund-raisers. It also came to the attention of the

Comic Book Legal Defense Fund The Comic Book Legal Defense Fund (CBLDF) is an American non-profit organization formed in 1986 to protect the First Amendment rights of comics creators, publishers, and retailers covering legal expenses. Charles Brownstein served as the organiza ...

, which became heavily involved and spent tens of thousands of dollars for Castillo's defense. ''Keith's Comics'' has since voluntarily removed comics with a rating worse than 'R' from its selection.

References

External links

Texas state case law United States Free Speech Clause case law 2002 in United States case law 2002 in Texas {{US-case-law-stub