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The Child As Victim And Perpetrator: Laws Punishing Juvenile "Sexting", Joanna L. Barry

Vanderbilt Journal of Entertainment & Technology Law

As penalties for child pornography increase in severity across the United States, new technologies and teenage ingenuity are creating problems that legislatures never considered. In response to the "sexting" phenomenon, prosecutors are charging minors under traditional child pornography laws--originally intended to punish adult behavior--with creating, possessing, and distributing child pornography. These charges carry severe penalties, including sex offender registration, and unfairly punish impulsive juveniles. Some states, conscious of prosecutors' and parents' struggle to respond to this behavior, are proposing new legislation, such as supplementing traditional child pornography charges with a new offense for sexting and allowing prosecutors to choose from …