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SMS. OMG! LOL! TTYL: TRANSLATING THE LAW TO ACCOMMODATE TODAY'S TEENS AND THE EVOLUTION FROM TEXTING TO SEXTING
Author(s) -
Ostrager Bryn
Publication year - 2010
Publication title -
family court review
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.171
H-Index - 4
eISSN - 1744-1617
pISSN - 1531-2445
DOI - 10.1111/j.1744-1617.2010.01345.x
Subject(s) - child pornography , face (sociological concept) , criminology , pornography , product (mathematics) , juvenile , register (sociolinguistics) , law , internet privacy , psychology , computer security , sociology , political science , the internet , computer science , world wide web , social science , linguistics , philosophy , geometry , mathematics , biology , genetics
Around the country some teenagers are using their cell phones to distribute nude or seminude pictures of themselves through text messages. An alarming number of these teenagers who are caught possessing or distributing the pictures face criminal charges as a child pornographer. Some face the possibility of jail time; others must register as a sex offender. Such harsh punishments are the product of laws that have not caught up with technology's advancements. This Note suggests that child pornography laws be restructured to include a category for juvenile “sexters” so these teenagers are not prosecuted as adults or forced to register as sex offenders. The laws should recognize different categories of sexters and provide rehabilitation programs suited to respond to the level of risk each sexter presents.