State of Michigan goes after e-mail spammers

When does sending out anonymous email advertising become a criminal act? When you send advertisements for liqour and smokes to young children, apparently. On top of operating a registry service that seeks to protect children from certain type of advertising, the state of Michigan is looking to sue two firms that sent junk mail. Not for sending the mail in and of itself, of course, but for sending materials to children that they cannot legally buy. More of a loophole than anything, it seems that in the fight against spam even a State can pull dirty tricks. While it seems unlikely that Michigan will prevail, it would be pretty funny to hear of spam groups being shut down on technicialities. Each of the two companies being sued faces up to $10,000 in fines.