WASHINGTON, DC -- An unprecedented meeting between invited adult production companies and the FBI has been reported in the adult press. The meeting, which took place with little fanfare and no public notice, has not so far been mentioned in the mainstream press. The names of the invited companies have not been disclosed. However, some First Amendment attorneys, including Paul Cambria, Greg Piccionelli and Jeffrey Douglas, were in attendance and have described the meeting, in general terms, as positive.

“We just met with a number of FBI agents who are in charge of the 2257 inspection process,” Cambria told AVN.com. “A number of companies were invited and we just came to that meeting at the FBI headquarters in Washington. The purpose of the meeting as described by the FBI agents, by the attorneys and offices of general counsel, was to explain the inspection process to us and attempt to have a dialogue which would result in an easier inspection process.

“And we did have that dialogue and I think it was beneficial to the adult industry. We have a clearer understanding now of their procedures and I think that we have opened up a channel of communication to try to make the inspection process a more productive and less onerous one from the standpoint of the adult industry.”

Jeffrey Douglas told AVN.com that the FBI indicated it is open to "a variety of means of communication," and it is not limiting those opportunities to industry heavyweights. The bureau is open to a dialogue with companies both large and small, regardless if they have attorneys representing them, he said.

Greg Piccionelli described a discussion with James Burrus, the Assistant Director for the criminal investigative division for the FBI in charge of 2257 inspections, in which Burrus said it was difficult for the FBI to regulate an industry without an open dialogue, and that in the near future, the FBI intends to stay in more direct contact with the adult press.

“It was clear that they are really trying to communicate with the industry as professionally as they can,” Piccionelli said.

Information and quotes are from Dan Miller, AVN.com, 10/12/06
And from Gretchen Gallen, XBIZ.com, 10/12/06

2257 INSPECTION OF A “SECONDARY PRODUCER”

CHATSWORTH, CA -- The latest in a series of FBI inspections of adult entertainment production companies’ records to determine compliance under the federal record-keeping law, 18 U.S.C. §2257, has been confirmed by Legend Video co-owner Bruce Mendleson, who said five agents arrived in a visit this week and asked to inspect records related to five specific titles.

Legend Video buys, duplicates and distributes finished adult films, but does not actually produce the films, which means that the company falls in the category of being a “secondary producer,” and therefore not subject to 2257 inspections under the terms of an injunction issued in December, 2005, by U.S. District Court Judge Walker D. Miller in the FSC challenge to the law, Free Speech Coalition v. Alberto Gonzales. So, why were they subjected to this inspection? Good question. The agents had ample warning that the company was a secondary producer. Legend Video attorney Jeffrey Douglas was actually put on the phone by Mendleson to talk with the agents during the inspection.

“The explanation that the agent in charge gave to me regarding their decision to continue despite my objections was wholly unsatisfactory,” Douglas said. “The next step is to meet with the FSC litigation team and plan our response.”

In any case, Mendleson said Legend was well prepared for the inspection.

“We’ve always had our records up-to-date,” he said. “We were very well-prepared because we have one full-time employee who does nothing but 2257, and that person has an assistant as well.”

Mendleson said the agents told him Legend was the eighth company to be inspected. Inspections of seven companies have been reported in the adult press: Legend Video, Sunshine Films, Diabolic Video, Sebastian Sloane Productions in Pennsylvania, Robert Hill Productions and, in recent disclosures, Evasive Angles and Darkside Entertainment.

Information and quotes are from Michael Hayes, Xbiz.com, 10/10/06

NEW CONGRESSIONAL COMMITTE ON PORN

WASHINGTON, DC -- Senator Sam Brownback (R-KS) has called for a new investigative commission, similar to the Meese Commission of the 1980s, which would examine how adult entertainment influences society today.

Information from Agape Press , 10/10/06