573.100. Telephones, obscene or indecent commercial messages, direct or electronic recording, penalties, exceptions. - Missouri Statutes

Telephones, obscene or indecent commercial messages, direct orelectronic recording, penalties, exceptions.

573.100. 1. As used in this section, the following termsmean:

(1) "Indecent", language or material that depicts ordescribes, in terms patently offensive as measured bycontemporary community standards, sexual or excretory activitiesor organs;

(2) "Obscene", any comment, request, suggestion or proposalis obscene if:

(a) Applying contemporary community standards, itspredominant appeal is to prurient interest in sex; and

(b) Taken as a whole with respect to the average person,applying contemporary community standards, it depicts ordescribes sexual conduct in a patently offensive way; and

(c) Taken as a whole, it lacks serious literary, artistic,political or scientific value.Obscenity shall be judged with reference to its impact uponordinary adults.

2. It shall be unlawful for any person, by means of atelephone communication for commercial purposes, to make directlyor by means of an electronic recording device, any comment,request, suggestion, or proposal which is obscene or indecent.Any person who makes any such comment, request, suggestion, orproposal shall be in violation of the provisions of this sectionregardless of whether such person placed or initiated thetelephone call.

3. It shall be unlawful for any person to permit knowinglyany telephone or telephone facility connected to a local exchangetelephone under such person's control to be used for any purposeprohibited by subsection 2 of this section.

4. Any person who violates any provision of this section isguilty of a class A misdemeanor unless such person has pleadedguilty to or has been found guilty of the same offense committedat a different time, in which case the violation is a class Dfelony. For purposes of this subsection, each violationconstitutes a separate offense.

5. The prohibitions and penalties contained herein are notapplicable to a telecommunications company as defined in section386.020, RSMo, over whose facilities prohibited communicationsmay be transmitted.

(L. 1989 H.B. 225 § 2)