• by Wendy Davis  @wendyndavis, December 4, 2017

A federal judge has rejected Backpage's request for an order prohibiting Missouri Attorney General Joshua Hawley from proceeding with an investigation into whether online classifieds site violated state consumer protection laws.

U.S. Magistrate Judge Patricia Cohen in St. Louis said in a decision issued last week that the federal court lacked grounds to get involved in the battle between Backpage and Hawley. "In this case, there are (or were) adequate opportunities for Backpage to present its federal claims in the state-court action," Cohen wrote.

The decision marks a setback for Backpage, which is fighting several lawsuits alleging that the company facilitates sex trafficking through its online ads.

Earlier this year, Backpage asked Cohen to issue an injunction blocking Hawley from enforcing a "civil investigative demand" that would require Backpage to turn over seven years' worth of records relating to operations and editorial practices. Hawley's office said the investigation centered on whether Backpage violated a state consumer protection law that bans unfair and deceptive practices.

Backpage said the investigation should be blocked, because Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act protects web sites from prosecution for illegal ads posted by users.

Hawley countered that Backpage may not be entitled to immunity, due to evidence that the company "has played a direct and active role in creation, soliciting, and promoting advertisements for illegal commercial sex on its website."

But Backpage noted that the federal Communications Decency Act trumps state laws, including Missouri's consumer protection measure. The company also said the only relevant question is whether the ads were created by users -- as opposed to factors such as whether the site promoted the ads. "Section 230 immunity cannot be evaded by attacking a website’s overall design and operation or by claiming it invited or solicited unlawful content," Backpage argued. "The issue is who authored, created, and posted the particular content that allegedly caused harm."

Cohen dismissed Backpage's request without ruling on whether the company was entitled to immunity for ads relating to sex trafficking.

In January, Backpage said it would shutter its "adult" ads section, which observers said mainly contained prostitution ads. But since then many of those ads appear to have migrated to other sections of the site.

Congress is considering amending the Communications Decency Act by allowing sex-trafficking victims to pursue civil lawsuits against some websites that ran prostitution ads, and enabling state officials to prosecute businesses that violate federal sex-trafficking laws.