Should Courts Be Able To Ban Computer And Internet Usage?

from the increasingly-more-difficult dept

Now that Kevin Mitnick is finally being allowed on the internet again, the NY Times is wondering about whether or not courts go too far in banning computer criminals from using computers or the internet (here's the same story on a non-registration required site). The courts, it seems, are somewhat divided on the issue. So, if you're a computer criminal, there are some parts of the country where you're more likely to be banned than others. I would imagine that, eventually, this issue will have to go to the Supreme Court to be cleared up, but we might be better off the longer we wait. As computers and the internet become even more pervasive in our lives, the courts are going to have to recognize that banning someone from using a computer or the internet after they've served their sentence will make it nearly impossible for them to function. It sounds like a more reasonable solution is to require certain offenders to be monitored while they're using the computer.

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