September 9, 2010 · Most of us would consider it a heart-breaking tragedy if our child were suddenly burdened with a criminal record. But it could happen if a minor child were caught in possession of nude photographs or explicit text messages on his or her cell phone.
“She and one of her little girlfriends were playing in the house, just making little videos, you know nothing suggestive. They were dancing….” This was a situation that was mentioned at the Girls-Inc. town meeting on sexting, presented for local parents, teachers, and education groups.
Girls, Inc. spokes person Anais Biera says sexting is not a new term to most parents – at the same time, it is difficult and sometimes overwhelming to effectively manage our children’s technological contacts.
Biera: “Kids are actually synced in pretty much eight hours a day at minimum – into their computers, into their laptops, into their phones. Apps such as Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, MySpace, are all apps on phones.”
Police chief Bill McManus said parents and kids are often surprised that there are serious consequences for something that kids think is an innocent act of flirting.
McManus: “There are different penalties you know, within a certain age range or over a certain age. There are different penalties, but it’s still a crime.”
So what’s a parent to do? Advice from the experts – warn the child of the dangers – often – that they could have a record as a sexual predator for distributing or even receiving child pornography.
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