Court Upholds Conviction In Teen's Porn Broadcast

INDIANAPOLIS -- The Indiana Court of Appeals earlier this week upheld the conviction of a teen driver who was playing a pornographic video in his car.

The video screen was not installed in a typical place, nor was it the usual small-sized mobile screen, 6News' Rick Hightower reported.

The 16-year-old boy was pulled over at 38th and Sutherland Avenue last year because he had the sex video for all to see on a 15-inch video screen in the rear window of his car.

Mobile video is a huge industry that has blossomed in recent years as Americans yearned for ways to entertain children on long trips and pushed the envelope with high-tech audio-video setups capable of producing a home theater-like experience on the road.

Millions watch DVDs on their in-car screens, but there are legal stipulations to follow.

It is against the law to watch while driving, and there are also laws about what can be shown and who can see it.

"People have to be responsible for what's on those screens," said Indianapolis Metro police Sgt. Paul Thompson. "We had a situation where someone had a pornographic video that was visible to people outside the vehicle. Indiana has laws that protect children from obscene matter."

Children, whose parents' cars were nearby, got an eyeful of the on-screen action, and there wasn't much that could be done to avoid seeing it.

The appeals court affirmed a lower court conviction on Tuesday.

Audio Vision, in 2700 block of North Post Road, is one of many stores that install custom audio and video systems.

They are commonly most popular in vans and SUVs. Owner Sam Kassebnia said some of his customers have asked for video screens to be installed in odd places.

"They do ask for unusual locations such as in the trunk lid. They can be placed in the trunk lid for shows. They can open the trunk and show to others in a parking lot, for example," Kassebnia said. "Other places people have asked me to put a screen in is in the front grill of the vehicle, which I advised them against it."

Video screens usually face the rear from between front seats or are installed in headrests.