The company also pled guilty to charges it failed to properly label videotapes and DVDs in 2002 and 2003. As part of a plea deal over federal charges, the company owned by Joe Francis will have to pay $2.1 million dollars in fines and restitution. Link to SF Chronicle story, and here's AVN's take:

[I]ts videos (...) feature young women exposing their breasts, stripping nude and masturbating in front of a camera. The company entered its plea in Panama City Fla., before U.S. District Court Judge Richard Smoak. MRA Holdings LLC, also entered into the agreement, according to the Justice Department.

The pleas means the two companies, both owned by Francis, will have to pay $2.1 million in fines and restitution, with about $1.6 million of it coming from the companies and the remaining $500,000 coming from Francis himself.

According to court papers distributed by the Justice Department, “Girls Gone Wild” producers admitted filming, producing and distributing sexually-explicit material in 2002 and 2003 in violation of the record keeping law, known as Section 2257 of Title 18, Part I, Chapter 110 of the United States Code.

Under Section 2257, the producer of any book, magazine, video or film is required to keep records of anyone performing sexually explicit acts after July 3, 1995, such as their name and date of birth along with documents providing proof of such information, including other names the performer has used.

posted by Xeni Jardin at 04:12:10 PM permalink | Other blogs' comments