Freshman Rep. Steve Hartgen's controversial Internet harassment bill is dead for the session; it was on the House Judiciary Committee's agenda this afternoon, but was withdrawn at the sponsor's request. "I got a lot of very positive comments on the concept, but there were questions about how do we implement this," Hartgen said. He said he got "squished" between two forces - attorneys on the Judiciary Committee who had concerns about the underlying telephone harassment statute that Hartgen, R-Twin Falls, sought to amend, and prosecuting attorneys who like that statute and want to continue to use it without it getting "watered down." Hartgen said House Judiciary Chairman Jim Clark, R-Hayden Lake, "showed me a graceful, delightful exit ... I'll hold it this year." Next year, he may try a new tack, with an Internet harassment bill that's separate from the telephone harassment law.

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