Sexting Law Reform

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In today’s American society, almost everyone, even children as young as six, owns a cell phone with a camera. Although convenient, camera phones also open the door to massive problems concerning child pornography that stem from sexting, or sending nude or lascivious photos. According to a 2010 Federal Bureau of Investigation survey1 of 4,400 middle and high school students, “approximately eight percent of students reported that they had sent a sext of themselves to others while thirteen percent said they had received a sext.” The main problem with sexting, aside from being child pornography if it is a picture of minor, is the ease of dissemination of the sext to other contacts or even the Internet. The United States alone has seen several students commit suicide after a sext intended for one person’s eyes goes viral or is sent to the entire high school. Such was the case of Ohio high school student, Jesse Logan, who sent nude photos to her boyfriend who then sent them to other students who harassed her until she committed suicide.2 Currently, there are laws in place against minors sexting and sexting to minors and they fall under the child pornography category. While the laws are intended to protect minors from sexual predators, what most minors do not understand is that they are subject to them as well. This means that, if fifteen-year-old Timmy decides to sext his fifteen-year-old girlfriend, Sarah, a naked picture of himself, both Timmy and Sarah could be tried in court with charges of disseminating child pornography and possessing child pornography. These serious charges can result in having to register as a sex offender for several years, although the message may have been sent and received consensually by both parties. This... ... middle of paper ... ...tle11/ar8/ch8.html. Accessed on 16 Apr. 2104. 10 Merritt, Jim. Senate Bill No. 256. 2013. Available at http://www.in.gov/legislative/bills/2013/PDF/IN/IN0256.1.pdf. Accessed on 16 Apr. 2014. 11 Ind. Code § 35-50-3-3 (Amended by Acts 1977, P.L. 340). Available at http://www.ai.org/legislative/ic/code/title35/ar50/ch3.html. Accessed on 16 Apr. 2014. 12 Oddi, Marcia. "The Indiana Law Blog." : Ind. Law. N.p., 25 Dec. 2008. Web. 16 Apr. 2014. http://indianalawblog.com/archives/2008/12/ind_law_16_is_i.html. 13"Sexting." Sex Crime Criminal Defense RSS. N.p., n.d. Web. 16 Apr. 2014. http://www.sexcrimecriminaldefense.com/sexting/. 14 Hinduja, Sameer, and Justin Patchin. "State Sexting Laws: A Brief Review of State Sexting Laws and Policies." CyberBullying.US. Cyberbullying Research Center, n.d. Web. 16 Apr. 2014. http://www.cyberbullying.us/state_sexting_laws.pdf.

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