Internet Crime - Are Your Children at Risk?
Posted on June 3, 2009
Filed Under Internet Crime, Juvenile Justice, L.A. Criminal Defense Attorney, Sex Offenders, criminal defense attorney |
- 1 in 5 tweens, children aged 8 to 12, have posted personal information about themselves on the Internet.
- 1 in 4 pre-teens have been contacted online by a stranger.
- 1 in 10 tweens have responded and chatted online with someone they didn’t know.
Those are some of the disturbing findings of the Tween Internet Safety Survey sponsored by Cox Communications and the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. By the time they’re 9, most American children have used the Internet. Not quite half (42%) of 8- to 10-year olds have a personal email account. By the time they’re 11 and 12, 71% have their own email accounts, 50% have their own cell phone, 41% regularly send instant messages, and more than a third have a profile on a social network site like Facebook or MySpace.
Of those preteens with social network profiles, the survey found that 61% posted photos of themselves to their site, 48% admitted they had lied about their age on their site, and 51% said they’d received messages from people they didn’t know.
The survey and an accompanying summit hosted by John Walsh, host of Fox TV’s America’s Most Wanted, brought together teens, tweens and experts to talk about the perils children encounter in cyberspace. Walsh called social network sites “a hunting ground” for pedophiles and warned that posting personal profiles on such sites increases children’s risk of being contacted by strangers, being bullied by peers, or being the victim of an embarrassing attack or worse. Often the danger comes from strangers preying on unsuspecting children. Sometimes, though, the danger comes from peers – petty jealousies, bullying or horsing around that goes too far.
When committed by one child against another, these crimes are prosecuted in the California juvenile court system. “Juvenile courts handle cases involving children between the ages of 10 and 17,” explains expert Los Angeles criminal defense attorney Stephen Rodriquez. “The intent is to rehabilitate the child, not punish him or her.”
However, when an adult acts against a child on the Internet, he can be charged with a sex crime against a minor, a serious crime in the state of California that can be life changing. Conviction is likely to result in a felony record, a prison sentence, and lifetime registration as a sex offender. Early defense by an experienced Los Angeles criminal defense lawyer can minimize charges brought against you.
-Legal Pro
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