The arrest of several “sexting” teenagers on charges of child pornography is alarming parents, school officials, police and prosecutors.
© AFP/File Jewel Samad

May 17, 2009, (Sawf News) - The arrest of several “sexting” teenagers on charges of child pornography is alarming parents, school officials, police and prosecutors.

At least 20 prosecutions have been initiated or threatened in a number of US states in recent months.

Ironically, laws written to protect children from sexual predators are being used to prosecute them and potentially brand them as sex offenders!

In a recent case being closely followed by experts, staff at the local school in Tunkhannock found several pictures of pupils in various states of undress on other pupils' phones.

The school handed the phones to Wyoming County district attorney George Skumanick, who threatened the pupils with child pornography charges, but offered them a six-month education program to learn about the consequences of their action as an alternative.

Riled by Skumanick’s equating of their offense with child pornography, three girls and their parents decided to sue the DA with the help of the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU).

"Child porn is about the abuse and exploitation of minors by adults. That's not happening here," says Witold Walczak, legal director for ACLU in Pennsylvania.

"The kids who do this are doing potential harm to themselves. They are both the perpetrator and the victim. Why would you want to compound that with a criminal prosecution and conviction?"

Parry Aftab, a leading authority on cybercrime, says legal options for dealing with cases of sexting "are insane." She would like to see children face misdemeanor charge rather than child pornography charges for such offenses.

A number of states are contemplating law changes.

Ohio is considering a proposal that would see the practice of sexting reduced from a crime to a misdemeanor. Vermont is debating a bill that would legalize consensual exchange of graphic images between two 13-to-18-year-olds but passing on such images would remain a crime.

According to a survey by the National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy and Cosmogirl.com, 20% of teens (22% of girls and 18% of boys) electronically sent or posted online nude or semi-nude photos or videos of themselves.

The challenge with framing laws that regulate sexting, cyberbullying, harassment and sexual offending is that they should not create loopholes for sexual predators.

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