Providence, R.I. • A proposal that would have required a filter for online pornography that could be lifted with a $20 fee was withdrawn Tuesday by a lawmaker who cited its “dubious origins.”
Sen. Frank Ciccone said he pulled the bill after The Associated Press reported Monday that the legislation had been pushed around the country by a man with a history of outlandish lawsuits including one trying to marry his computer as a statement against gay marriage.
The measure, pushed in statehouses across the country by a group led by Chris Sevier, has been described as the Elizabeth Smart Law after the teenager kidnapped from her Utah home in 2002.