Establishes provisions relating to the admissibility of a defendant's creative or artistic expression as evidence

SECOND REGULAR SESSION
HOUSE BILL NO. 2677
103RD GENERAL ASSEMBL Y
INTRODUCED BY REPRESENT A TIVE JOHNSON.
5716H.01I JOSEPH ENGLER, Chief Clerk
AN ACT
T o amend chapter 490, RSMo, by adding thereto one new section relating to the admissibility
of a defendant's creative or artistic expression as evidence.
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the state of Missouri, as follows:
Section A. Chapter 490, RSMo, is amended by adding thereto one new section, to be
2 known as section 490.750, to read as follows:
490.750. 1. This section shall be known and may be cited as the "Restoring
2 Artistic Pr otection Act of 2026".
3 2. As used in this section, the term "cr eative or artistic expr ession" means the
4 expr ession or application of cr eativity or imagination in the pr oduction or arrangement
5 of forms, sounds, words, movements, or symbols, including music, dance, performance
6 art, visual art, poetry , literature, film, and other such objects or media.
7 3. Except as prov ided under subsection 4 of this section, a defendant's cr eative
8 or artistic expr ession, whether original or derivative, shall not be admissible as evidence
9 against such defendant in a criminal case.
10 4. A court may admit evidence described in subsection 3 of this section in a
11 hearing conducted in camera if the state pro ves by clear and convincing evidence:
12 (1) (a) If the expr ession is original, that the defendant intended a literal meaning
13 rather than a figurative or fictional meaning; or
14 (b) If the expr ession is derivative, that the defendant intended to adopt the literal
15 meaning of the expr ession as the defendant's own thought or statement;
16 (2) That the crea tive expr ession r efers to the specific facts of the crime alleged;
17 (3) That the expr ession is relevan t to an issue of fact that is disputed; and
EXPLANA TION — Matter enclosed in bold-faced brackets [thus] in the above bill is not enacted and is
intended to be omitted from the law . Matter in bold-face type in the above bill is proposed language.
18 (4) That the expre ssion has distinct pro bative value not provi ded by other
19 admissible evidence.
20 5. In any hearing under subsection 4 of this section, the court shall make its
21 ruling on the r ecord and shall include its findings of fact essential to its ruling.
22 6. If the court admits any evidence described under subsection 3 of this section
23 under the exception under subsection 4 of this section, the court shall:
24 (1) Ensur e that the expre ssion is reda cted in a manner to limit the evidence
25 pr esented to the jury to that which is specifically excepted under subsection 4 of this
26 section; and
27 (2) Pr ovide appr opriate limiting instructions to the jury .
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