VA - Teens, technology, law: when sexting is not pornography

Original Article

05/22/2013

By Justin Jouvenal

When three US high school students from Virginia made mobile phone videos of drunken sex acts with fellow teens and shared them among themselves, they ended up in court last week facing charges usually reserved for adult predators: child pornography.

The case is one of a number where teens caught "sexting" have been charged with a crime that can carry a sentence of 20 years and could require registry as a sex offender.

In many other US states, the law has not caught up with the combustible mix of teens, technology and sex that has made sexting an issue. Prosecutors must rely on a patchwork of laws created before the rise of smartphones to handle such cases.

Some parents and rights groups are calling for a new law that would distinguish sexting from child pornography, create lesser punishments and focus on educating teenagers, not punishing them. But they also acknowledge that young victims can be devastated when embarrassing photos or videos are spread to their peers.

A mother whose 15-year-old son was charged with 12 counts of child pornography for sexting called the experience a nightmare. She said the teen, who has Asperger's syndrome, was naive when he sent out a topless photo of a classmate. ''He is thinking his life was at an end. He could be labelled as a sex offender,'' she said.

Parents of two teens in Ohio and Florida say their daughters committed suicide when they were ridiculed after sexually explicit images of them were forwarded to others. And sexted images and videos can be found by child pornographers, who trade them on the internet.

The three students on trial were charged in January with possession and distribution of child pornography after they filmed themselves engaging in sex acts with at least six teenage girls. All the sex acts were consensual and the 10 videos were filmed at parties at the teenagers' homes, beginning in December 2011. Legislators say they worry a law to make sexting a misdemeanour could unintentionally open a loophole that might be exploited by pedophiles.

In addition, the circumstances of such cases vary widely. They range from a girl willingly texting a racy photo of herself to a boyfriend who does not share it to teens secretly recording sex acts and maliciously spreading the videos.

In the US, at least 20 states have passed legislation on sexting since 2009, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures. States have generally moved to create more lenient punishments for sexting teens and to shield them from having to register as sex offenders. A University of New Hampshire survey found 7 per cent of young people had received a nude or nearly nude image, while 1 per cent said they had created sexually explicit images of themselves.

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Why Current Child Porn Laws Imprison the Wrong People

Original Article

05/20/2013

By Macie Melendez

Growing up, I was taught that prison was a place where people went when they did bad things. It was simple then: There were good people and there were bad people.

As I got older, the picture grew more complicated. I saw good people do bad things, and I saw bad people do good things. But recently, when one of the best people in my world did something that landed him in prison, my beliefs about the justice system and how it punishes American citizens were completely upended.

My friend was sentenced to five years in a federal prison for obtaining five pornographic images and one video that featured a minor. (This number is minuscule compared to the hundreds of thousands of images and videos that are collected by serious offenders.) He obtained these images through a peer-to-peer file sharing program. He was intentionally downloading porn, but he was not seeking out child porn. Once he knew the images and video file existed, he deleted them.

Unfortunately for him, there was a member of the FBI searching the Internet for child pornography offenders. That FBI agent was able to track his computer's IP address, find out who he was and where he lived. In that process, the FBI learned that he was a young man who held a full-time job, had earned a Master's degree and had never been convicted of a crime -- in fact, he had never been arrested for anything at all. In spite of those facts, the FBI felt it necessary to send about a dozen agents to his apartment, armed with guns and dressed like they were going into a war zone. They had a search warrant and used it to raid his apartment. When they didn't find anything, they left.

The FBI continued to monitor him while he went about his normal, crime-free life. After eight months of investigating, the FBI still found nothing more than that first unintentional download. Regardless, several FBI agents came back to his apartment, put him in handcuffs and took him to jail.

I now see that laws simply aren't black and white. Instead, they come with a lot of grey matter. Within that grey matter is emotion -- a powerful fuel that charges people to action. But emotion can be dangerous as it often clouds logic and critical thinking. For this reason, our laws dictate that courtrooms be presided over by emotionless judges; lawmakers, however, aren't given these same emotional restrictions.

Congress' repeated escalations of penalties for child pornography offenses are an example of emotion getting in the way of logic. What voter wouldn't support severe punishments for those supporting or distributing films with underage sex and nudity? Especially when they are explained as a means to catch the worst of the worst. But in reality, in practice, these laws have formed the basis of a modern-day witch-hunt that thrives on the vagaries of the Internet and too often captures individuals who make relatively simple errors online, rather than those who produce such material or directly abuse children.

In late February 2013, the United States Sentencing Commission (USSC) released a report to Congress that examined the cases of offenders that have been sentenced under current federal sentencing guidelines for child pornography offenses. This report was conducted for a number of reasons, including the fact that "an increasing number of courts believe that penalties are overly severe for at least some non-production offenders" and that "there has been a growing disconnect between the existing sentencing scheme and the continuing evolution in the technology used by offenders."

See Also:

• The Government Is Planting Child Porn On Your Computer?
• Woman falls victim to computer virus
• Pentagon declined to investigate hundreds of purchases of child pornography
• FBI's New Crisis: Too Much Sexting

Read the rest of the article

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Why I Had to Talk to My Kids About Sex Offenders

Original Article

03/21/2013

By Amanda Morin

I have always been fairly frank with my kids. I started the difficult conversations about things like sex, sexuality, drugs, and peer pressure when they were very young. As they grew older, the conversations evolved and I felt confident that they were comfortable talking to me. So, I patted myself on the back, thinking I'd done my job well.

Last year, though, I was blindsided when someone in my family was sentenced on charges of possession of sexually explicit material. This was a difficult conversation I never thought to have with my kids — a conversation about child pornography and sexual predators.

Keep reading.

"Stranger Danger" Isn't Always From a Stranger

Sure, I taught my kids about "stranger danger" and I'd read stories about kids being charged with possession of sexually explicit materials as a result of sexting, but this was different. This was personal.

I had to explain to my two older kids why they wouldn't be having any more contact with their relative, and (thankfully) confirmed they hadn't been victimized in any way.

This was a conversation about someone they knew, loved, and trusted, which, as Circle of Moms member Barb S. points out, is the scary thing about this type of situation. Though her circumstance was a little different, she's right when she says, "He's not the creepy stranger danger that everyone fears will hurt their child."

Talking About the Circle of Trust

When you consider that the National Child Traumatic Stress Network reports (PDF) that in three quarters of reported cases of sexual abuse involving a child, the perpetrator is a family member or someone in that child's "circle of trust," I can't imagine why I hadn't had this conversation with my kids sooner.

So, I sat down with my teenager and told her what was going on. I asked her flat out whether or not she'd been exposed to any inappropriate imagery or touched in an inappropriate way. I talked to my younger child about what child pornography is and how it exploits children. We talked about things we should have talked about a long time ago.

Why Didn't I Have the Tough Conversation Sooner?

Why hadn't I had this conversation before? To be honest, I was one of the people a member named Roberta refers to when she says, "You'd be surprised at how many people live with their head in the sand, always thinking it will never happen in 'their' family."

I didn't think my kids would ever come in contact with a sexual offender, despite knowing the odds. I was a better mother than that. I was naive. I was arrogant. I was wrong.

It was a very difficult conversation, but it was also a real eye-opener to me that these things can happen to anyone and kids need to know about this stuff so they feel comfortable talking to their parents.

Continuing the Conversation

It's been over a year now, and we've continued to have an ongoing dialogue about the issue. I've learned that my daughter has friends who were not so lucky to have their parents talk to them about sex offenders in their "circle of trust."

Not everybody in my family agrees with my decision to talk to my kids openly about this, but I'm glad I did. As Barb says, "This should never be kept a dirty little secret."

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UK - LulzSec group sentenced; hacker combats child porn allegations

Original Article

05/16/2013

By Charlie Osborne

SOUTHWARK - Four members of the LulzSec hacking group were on Thursday sentenced in court after pleading guilty to various computer hacking-related charges.

Ryan Ackroyd, 26; Jake Davis, 20; and Mustafa al-Bassam, 18, were all sentenced together with Ryan Cleary, 21, over a two day hearing at Southwark Crown Court, London.

Each member of the LulzSec "hacktivist" group admitted to various hacking charges, including taking down corporate and government websites, between February and September 2011.

Presiding Judge Deborah Taylor, on Thursday, sentenced Ackroyd to 30 months, in which he must serve at least half. Davis to two years in a young offenders institution, in which he must serve at least twelve months. Bassam received a suspended sentence of 20 months, and Cleary was ordered to serve at least half of a 32-month sentence.

Judge Taylor commented: "You sought to amuse yourselves and wreaked destruction and havoc. You cared nothing about the privacy of others, but kept your own identities hidden."

Indecent images

Aside from hacking charges, an additional indictment against Ryan Cleary was delayed due to a court miscommunication.

After the seizure of Cleary's computer and and subsequent recovery of deleted files, the hacker was charged with downloading and possessing indecent images of children following a second arrest on October 4, 2012.

Under the U.K. COPINE scale — a measure of the severity of images the images in question were classified as child "erotica" and deliberate sexual posing. A total of 46 images contained children aged between six and 18 months, whereas others included children aged between ten and 15 years.

The defense team said that Cleary is not a "professional pervert" or sexually obsessed, but rather was obsessed with finding data and using his computer — a reason laid at the door of his client's Asperger's syndrome.

A lack of information in psychological reports and pre-hearing files resulted in a delayed sentencing. Cleary, who admitted to downloading the images, will not be sentenced this week.

Criminal computer activities

Former soldier Ackroyd, under the alias of a 16-year-old girl named "Kayla," admitted hacking into a number of websites in 2011, including Sony, Nintendo, News Corp. and the Arizona State Police. The 26-year-old sat across from his lawyer with a pensive, wide-eyed look, as he was branded the "most sophisticated" defendant, and he was responsible for researching vulnerabilities and exploits as well as executing hacks.

The prosecution said that Sony suffered $20 million in damages, and revenue loss due to the security breach is "incalculable." An estimated 24.6 million customer accounts were compromised.

Davis and Bassam pleaded guilty to counts of conspiring to access and impair a computer without authorization, including launching attacks against the CIA and Serious Organised Crime Agency (SOCA).

Ackroyd was dressed in a sweatshirt and jeans, whereas Bassam was suited and booted with a serious but resigned look on his face. Davis, the last to arrive, chewed gum and appeared relatively unconcerned.

During later proceedings, however, the strain showed in the eyes of each member of the hacktivist group as they sat behind a glass wall and watched their fates being bargained for.

According to the prosecution, Davis was responsible for releasing press statements; controlling the LulzSec Twitter feed, and defacing website pages.

Bassam allegedly controlled the group's website; published stolen information to sites including Pastebin, and helped with stolen data distribution — including through the use of BitTorrent technology and mirror websites. In addition, the LulzSec member allegedly researched computer system vulnerabilities ripe for exploitation.

Cleary, otherwise known by his Internet alias "Viral," pleaded guilty to the same hacking charges, in addition to counts of supplying articles with intent to impair computer systems and breaking into the Pentagon's Air Force systems. Cleary spent over five years building a sophisticated botnet — with a minimum of 100,000 computers at its disposal at any one time — which in turn was used for both Anonymous and LulzSec campaigns.

A number of website intrusions were based around vulnerabilities found within the Internet Explorer browser, and websites with high traffic levels were targeted. The 21-year-old maintained that his botnet was only "rented out" ten or so times for monetary gain — and raised only £2,000 in total — whereas the prosecution stated it did not believe this was truly the case.

In addition, Cleary's lawyers argued that although he gave botnet access to Anonymous, there is no evidence that he directed or controlled it — therefore Cleary was guilty of supply rather than actual hacking.

Criminal barrister Gideon Cammerman argued that using a botnet was "not brain surgery." Although the result was a sophisticated website takedown attack, the defense attorney wanted the judge to keep in mind that in the case of the Serious Organised Crime Agency website, there was no evidence to suggest the website was infiltrated — it was only taken offline for a short time.

The motivation

Outside of the courtroom, Cammerman called the LulzSec hackers "a group of talented young boys who hacked particular things for particular reasons."

In contrast, prosecutor Sandip Patel accused the LulzSec members of launching "sophisticated, orchestrated attacks," which caused firms and individuals "millions of pounds' worth" of damage, coupled with the "dire, personal consequences" suffered by individual victims.

Cammerman said the hackers were "politically motivated and morally complicated," which made for a complex case. In this manner, both prosecution and defense agreed, as Patel stated in the hearing: "This is not about young, immature men behaving badly."

U.S. extradition

An indictment based on two counts of encouraging and assisting in an offense were, "not in the public interest to pursue." However, as the U.S. has also issued the same indictment, prosecution had to confirm that currently there has been "no formal request for extradition." Davis' defense team said that "there is an appetite for this type of prosecution in the United States," and it is not a risk the 20-year-old should be exposed to.

As they were individually led away, Bassam looked relieved, whereas the other members of the Anonymous splinter group had resigned expressions.

Cammerman said outside of the courtroom that some of the victims were "thoroughly deserving" of what happened to them, the Westboro Baptist Church as one example.

LulzSec exploded on the hacking scene in 2011 after targeting Sony Pictures Entertainment, which led to the taking down of the Playstation network. in a Los Angeles, California court last month, LulzSec member Cody Kretsinger, 25, was arrested and prosecuted in relation to the initial cyberattack.

Kretsinger, also known as "Recursion," admitted one count each of conspiracy and unauthorized impairment of a protected computer as part of a plea bargain, and was ordered to spend one year behind bars and perform 1,000 hours of community service.

LulzSec was politically motivated in the beginning; launching the first "cyber war" in tandem with Anonymous in retaliation to officials' attempts to shut down WikiLeaks. Target choices then began to move away from purely the political, and the Church of Scientology, Westboro Baptist Church and banking systems found themselves under attack.

However, the hacktivist group was compromised when de facto former leader Hector Monsegur — otherwise known as "Sabu" — turned mole after his own arrest and spent nine months passing information on to U.S. officials.

The hacker-turned-spy's information led to the arrests of alleged members of LulzSec and Anonymous in March 2012.

The ruling follows the arrest of the self-proclaimed "leader" of LulzSec in Australia. Matthew Flannery, 24, who allegedly used the name "Aush0k" in hacking activities, was charged for hacking into two computers after being apprehended in coastal town Point Clare.

During the first day of the hearing, Ackroyd wanted closure. His lawyer, John Cooper QC, counselled that the issue probably wouldn't be over that day. The 26-year-old replied: "They won't be done with me for a long time."

No matter the age, the U.K. justice system is unlikely to be "done" with cybercriminals any time soon.

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WV - New West Virginia law pairs youth sexting ban with education efforts, diversion

Original Article

We see nothing wrong with trying to educate kids and keep them off the registry, that is a move in the right direction, for once.

05/12/2013

By Lois M. Collins

West Virginia has new rules that outlaw sexting by youths. But the state is also trying to pair the rules to education and diversion so that young people learn why it's a bad idea to sext and can fix their mistakes without having to register forever as sex offenders.

The Associated Press reported that the law, signed Monday by Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin, makes it illegal for youths to make, possess or distribute photos, videos or other media that show a minor in an inappropriate sexual manner.
- Not all sexting is about sending / taking underage photos of kids, so this law is geared toward a specific issue, not sexting in general, at least that is how we read this.

The charge would be delinquency, but the law directs the state's Supreme Court to create an educational diversion program that, once completed, could lead to having the delinquency charge dropped.

"That program would show offenders the consequences of sexting, including the potential long-term harm on relationships and school and job opportunities," the AP story said.

Unlike some states, youths caught sexting would not be required to register as sex offenders.

That's important to Maureen Kanka, whose 7-year-old daughter Megan was abducted, assaulted and murdered by a neighbor who had previously been convicted of assaulting young girls. Her efforts helped lead to the crafting and passage of New Jersey's Megan's Law in 1994. It forces sex offenders to register when they move into a community. It was never meant to target juveniles who sext, she said, but it does and that's one of the changes she's pushing for in amendments, including providing more support for parole officers.

“We wanted to make sure that wouldn’t happen under any circumstances,” Kanka told the New Jersey Independent Press, referring to making teens register for sexting.

A state senator sponsoring amendments agreed. “No one is trying to defend sexting, but the intention here is to not have them live with the lifelong designation of ‘sex offender,’” said Sen. Linda Greenstein (D-Plainsboro). “With younger people, you still have the concept of rehabilitation. You don’t want them to make a mistake and live with it for the rest of their lives.”
- We are so sick and tired of hearing this!  Adults can also be rehabilitated, if you give them a chance.  Not all want to be, but most can.  So stop pretending that all adults are beyond repair.

Sexting charges vary from state to state. The Washington Post carried a story about one case this week from nearby Virginia, where three local teens took videos "of drunken sex acts with fellow teens" and shared them with each other. They each will be tried on charges of child pornography.

"In Virginia, Maryland and many other states, the law has not caught up with the combustible mix of teens, technology and sex that has made sexting an issue. Prosecutors must rely on a patchwork of laws created before the rise of smart­phones to handle such cases," wrote the Post's Justin Jouvenal.

"Some parents and rights groups are calling for a new law that would distinguish sexting from child pornography, create lesser punishments and focus on educating teenagers, not punishing them. But they also acknowledge that young victims can be devastated when embarrassing photos or videos are spread among their peers," the article said.

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OH - Former Alliance cop (Steven Fitzgerald Slimak) accused of sex crimes is bound over to grand jury

Steven Fitzgerald Slimak

Original Article

05/11/2013

By Gayle Agnew

A former Alliance Police Department officer accused of sex crimes appeared before Judge Jean Madden in Alliance Municipal Court on Friday.

Steven Fitzgerald Slimak, 42, of 2217 S. Arch Ave., was arrested on May 3 by members of the Ohio Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force at his home. Slimak was charged with possession of sexually oriented material involving a minor and pandering obscenity involving a minor, both third-degree felonies.

He waived his right to a preliminary hearing and his case was bound over to the Stark County grand jury.

Slimak had resigned from the department amid sex crime allegations more than a decade ago.

According to Alliance Police Detective John Jenkins, on May 4, officers executed a search warrant at the home Slimak shares with his mother and confiscated several computers, external hard drives and thumb drives as part of a two-week investigation.

Juvenile Detective Matthew Shatzer and patrolman R.H. Rummel assisted with the investigation, which also included members of the Secret Service, according to Jenkins.

Slimak resigned from the Alliance Police Department in 2002 after colleagues confronted him regarding an investigation into alleged child pornography activities. He was later convicted of disseminating matter harmful to juveniles, illegal use of a minor in nudity-oriented material, sexual imposition and pandering sexually oriented matter involving minors, according to law enforcement.

He was sentenced by Stark County Common Pleas Court Judge John Haas to serve more than two years in prison and another 10 months in Stark County Jail in conjunction with the charges, according to the online case docket.

According to the Stark County Sheriff's Office sex offender website, Slimak, who is registered as a sexually oriented offender, was released on Dec. 30, 2004.

Slimak remains in the Stark County Jail on a $250,000 bond.

If convicted of the latest charges, which were elevated because of the prior convictions, Slimak faces up to 10 years in prison and $20,000 in fines.

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AZ - Former Tucson officer (Martin Ward) arrested in child porn case

Martin Ward

Original Article

05/11/2013

TUCSON (AP) - A former Tucson police officer has been arrested following a months-long investigation into the online sharing of child pornography.

Tucson police say agents with the U.S. Marshals Service helped track 29-year-old Martin Ward to a motel in Prescott, where he was arrested late Friday. He's being held on a charge of sexual exploitation of a minor.

It's not immediately clear if Ward as an attorney.

Ward was hired as a Tucson officer in April 2007. In December, he resigned rather than face termination following an unrelated internal investigation.

In March, detectives began investigating online sharing of child pornography in the Tucson area. They identified a person on the eastside of the city who was sharing multiple files.

A search warrant of the home turned up several child porn videos, and detectives identified Ward as the suspect.

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KS - Former Wichita police officer (Greg P. Nicks) sentenced to life for child sex crimes

Greg P. Nicks

Original Article

05/03/2013

By HURST LAVIANA

A former Wichita police officer received consecutive life prison sentences Friday for sexually abusing a 15-month-old girl.

Greg P. Nicks, 32, was given a life sentence on each of four counts of sexual exploitation of a child, and he was ordered to serve two of the sentences consecutively. He will have to serve 50 years before becoming eligible for parole.

Prosecutors said Nicks was arrested after sending sexually explicit cellphone pictures of himself and the girl to a woman he was having a sexual relationship with. The woman, Luz Coronado, 29, is serving a sentence of life without parole for 25 years on similar charges. Prosecutors said police were tipped off by the girl’s mother.

Defense lawyer Mark Schoenhofer said his client never had sexual contact with the girl. At the time, he said, Nicks was a body builder who was using steroids.

“The steroids not only increased Mr. Nicks’ muscularity, (they) also increased his appetite for sex,” Schoenhofer said in a written motion seeking a lighter prison sentence. “Mr. Nicks began leading a life of debauchery and over-indulgence in carnal pleasure. … The illicit relationship with Ms. Coronado advanced down a dark and perverted course of sexual promiscuity, including explicit text messages rife with sexual content.”

Nicks told District Judge Terry Pullman that his relationship with Coronado was an aberration.

“What I did is not what I am,” he said. “I’m just asking for a second chance. I won’t need a third.”

Prosecutor Justin Edwards introduced three written statements at the hearing, including one from the victim’s mother. She said Nicks had used her daughters — the 15-month-old and a 4-month-old — as sex objects to fulfill his sexual fantasies.

“I feel that Greg Nicks is beyond help and will act again on the impulse if given an opportunity,” she said in the statement.

Schoenhofer argued that no one was physically injured by Nicks’ behavior, and that the girls will have no memories of what Nicks did with them. Pullman said that doesn’t lessen the magnitude of the crime. He likened the crime to raping a comatose victim in a nursing home.

“A victim is no less a victim if there is no recollection of the injuries,” he said before imposing the sentence.

Nicks worked for the Wichita Police Department for just over three years beginning in 2006. He is a former football player for the Wichita Wild and the University of Kansas.

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The Government Is Planting Child Porn On Your Computer?

Original Article

05/02/2013

By Amber Harrison

A new virus has been cataloged, and it appears to be planting and distributing child pornography files. Hackers? No. The government is planting child porn on your computer, or so an alert published today indicates.

Before It’s News has interviewed a person, who spoke on condition of anonymity, that has been a victim of the virus implantation. The person was engaged in journalistic exposure of political corruption, and suddenly police appeared on his doorstep with a search warrant specifying a search for evidence of possessing and distributing child pornography. The story is a bit convoluted here, but basically the gentleman did a little more investigation and found rogue .exe files on his computer that appeared as normal emule sharing directories but contained “hundreds to thousands” of child pornography files. The potential whistleblower claims the virus was deliberately planted on his computer in order to stop his activity.

The article surmises the Internet Crimes Against Children task force may be behind the virus planting, though why is unclear.

Are You A Victim?

According to a USWGO Virus Report:

“I believe it was surrounded by comine.exe along with another exe file that had random characters so I don’t remember that file name since it had a certain kind of random characters and I believe it may have been in the TEMP folder.

It came with three rogue P2P file sharing applications that were not stored in the usual file directories for programs or even portable programs. Those files are called ares.exe, emule.exe, and shareaza.exe. They share possibly illegal files and files with Trojans embedded without the computer owners permission despite invalid claims by law enforcement that no one can force a user to download and share files on P2P networks. When the user discovers them and attempts to shut down the program using process termination on Task Manager(taskmgr.exe) the rogue Trojan control program attempts to revive the operation of the rogue P2P programs and will fully operate within 3-5 seconds or even up to 10 seconds depending on processing speed from CPU. No matter how many times the user continues stopping the program it comes right back. When the user attempts to end the task then quickly remove the files even with certain software, the Trojan that controls the rogue programs seems to regenerate the rogue programs which continues to share and download illegal material which can get the user in trouble…”

ESET Virus Radar has recognized the virus, and calls it Win32/MoliVampire. The short description indicates, “Win32/MoliVampire.A is a trojan which tries to download other malware from the Internet. Win32/MoliVampire.A may be spread via peer-to-peer networks.”

The trojan contains an URL address. It tries to download a file from the address. Files are copied into a shared folder of various instant messengers and P2P applications, according to the description.

In a hurried article posted on Before It’s News, a reporter emoted:

So anyone whom receives this virus or variants of Trojans similar to this virus, is at risk of being accused of distributing and possessing child pornography then having the computers and family photos, videos, and other personal data taken away forever. Then will likely end up years in federal or state prison then receives a lifetime sex offender record, isn’t that just great!!!!!

ICE Pads Their Stats

Evidently, it isn’t only alternative-news journalists who are being targeted. According to a Facebook page supporting 17-year-old autistic youth Andrew Rose:

“Operation Flicker was started By ICE [Immigration and Customs Enforcement Agency]. U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement is the principal investigative arm of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and the second largest investigative agency in the federal government. Created in 2003 through a merger of the investigative and interior enforcement elements of the U.S. Customs Service and the Immigration and Naturalization Service, “Operation Flicker” is part of Project Predator, a nationwide ICE initiative to protect children from sexual predators, including instances of sex tourism with minors, Internet child pornographers, criminal alien sex offenders, and child sex traffickers, according to the agency. Unfortunately, due to the system being used to net these predators, many children are being exposed to the the same Child Porn they were trying to stop.”

Apparently, in an effort to catch these dangerous internet predators, ICE attached child pornography images to .mp3 files on P2P sharing sites like LimeWire. Young Andrew Rose (Petition) downloaded two songs that came with little surprise packages attached. Scandalously and shamefully, Andrew is actually being prosecuted. His lawyer, on the support page, stated:

“The FBI and ICE are the ones who exposed Andrew Rose to Child Pornography ….. They were the Traffickers and became “That which they Seek.”

What Can You Do?

Computer users, especially those who use P2P file sharing programs and messaging, are encouraged to use ESET of McAfee virus scan/destroy software as both recognize the virus. It is noted that virus protection is not “bulletproof” with regard to this virus, and certainly will not protect against hidden attached files in normal sharing operations. If the government is planting child porn on your computer as some people have claimed, taking any and all steps possible to protect yourself and your family, including ceasing use of P2P applications, is advisable.

See Also:

• I spy ... porn? Suspected NASA snoop busted for misusing laptop
• Government child porn & other sex crimes

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CA - Ex-L.A. County sheriff's employee (Mark Robin Rainwater) sentenced in child porn case

Original Article

04/30/2013

By Robert J. Lopez

A former Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department employee was sentenced Tuesday to 18 years in federal prison for seeking to have sex with children and distributing child pornography, authorities said.

Mark Robin Rainwater, 46, was arrested on Oct. 12 at Shuttlesworth International Airport in Birmingham, Ala., with sex toys and children's toys in his luggage after he had arrived from California to meet two boys, according to federal authorities.

Rainwater was charged with possessing more than 200 videos and thousands of images of child pornography, "some of which involved babies, toddlers and prepubescent children involved in sadomasochistic and lewd and lascivious behavior," the U.S. attorney's office in Birmingham said in a statement.

Rainwater worked for the Sheriff's Department for 14 years in the information technology section, according to the U.S. attorney's office.

Rainwater thought he was going to have sex with an 8-year-old boy and a 13-year-old boy, authorities said. He had been communicating on the Internet and via text messages about meeting the children since August 2012.

"Rainwater believed he was communicating with a parent" who would allow him to have sex with the boys, the U.S. attorney's office said. Instead, he was dealing with an undercover police officer.

Authorities said a search of Rainwater's digital storage media and his email account uncovered 242 videos and more than 4,400 images of child pornography.

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NM - Ex-Portales cop (Victor Castillo) gets 25 years for maintaining a sexual relationship with a 16-year-old

Victor Castillo

Original Article

04/23/2013

Former Portales school resource officer Victor Castillo, 46, was sentenced Monday to 25 years in prison after pleading guilty to maintaining a sexual relationship with a 16-year-old Portales High School student, the Portales News-Tribune reported.

Castillo pleaded guilty in March to 17 of 34 charges, including sexual exploitation of a minor, criminal sexual contact of a minor, criminal sexual penetration of a minor and tampering with evidence, the News-Tribune said.

District Attorney Matt Chandler told state District Judge Donna Mowrer that State Police launched an investigation of Castillo after learning of a party at Castillo’s home northwest of Clovis, which involved sexual activity of minors, the paper reported.

Castillo’s cell phone was confiscated and sent to a forensic lab in Albuquerque where 10,000 deleted photos and three videos were recovered from the phone, including more than a dozen sexually explicit pictures, Chandler told the judge.

Chandler said the victim admitted to police that she had sent Castillo sexually explicit photos and videos, according to the News-Tribune.

Read the rest of the article

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GA - Bill would lighten teen sexting penalty in Georgia

Original Article

04/18/2013

By Tim Omarzu

The age of consent is 16 in Georgia.

But teens can face felony child pornography charges for "sexting," or sending one another nude photos via cellphone.

That would change under legislation sponsored by state Rep. Jay Neal, R-Chickamauga, that would make it a misdemeanor for someone at least 14 years old willingly to send a sexually explicit photo to someone who's 18 or younger.

"We don't want to criminalize stupid teenage behavior," said Neal, who referred to it as a "Romeo and Juliet clause."

"We don't want to make a felony out of it. It would still be a misdemeanor." said Neal, who preaches occasionally at his church in Ringgold, Ga. "We certainly are not encouraging that type of behavior. We still wanted them to understand it is not appropriate."

Under the bill, it still would be a felony for a teen -- for example, after a bitter break-up -- to distribute the explicit photos to harass, intimidate or embarrass another teen, or for commercial purposes.

Neal's House Bill 156 (PDF) passed the state House and Senate without a single vote in opposition. He expects Gov. Nathan Deal will sign it.Catoosa County, Ga., Sheriff Gary Sisk said he doesn't have any "heartburn" over the bill.

"It's more of a moral issue, not a criminal issue," he said. "We're not talking about pedophiles."

"The age of consent is 16," Sisk said. "Two 17-year-olds could have sex, and it's not against the law. But if one of them decided to take [and send an explicit] picture of themselves, they would now be in violation of the law."

A teen convicted of felony sexting would have to register as a sex offender, Sisk said.

"That stays with them for the rest of their lives," he said.

Walker County, Ga., Sheriff Steve Wilson said a felony conviction can limit a person's college and career options.

"It's like a ball and chain around your ankle," he said.

"The question is, should they get a break and not be charged with a felony?" Wilson asked. "I think so. I think they should probably be slapped with a misdemeanor."

"Right now, a D.A. had no other options than either to turn the other cheek or prosecute some serious felonies," Sisk said.

Lawmakers in other states have considered similar legislation. In 2009, Utah was one of the first states to make teen sexting a misdemeanor, not a felony.

Neal's bill also makes it illegal for someone to use online services to contact a child's parents or guardian to arrange to have sex with a child. Current law only makes it illegal for an adult to solicit the child directly or someone the adult believes is the child.

The Georgia Bureau of Investigation asked Neal to introduce that.

"It closed that loophole," Neal said.

Video Link

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VT - Tougher Child-Porn Law Would Make Viewing It a Crime

Original Article

02/20/2013

By KEN PICARD

A recent spike in arrests for possession of child pornography suggests Vermont is gaining ground in the battle against this cyber crime. Since December, state and federal prosecutors have announced the felony arrests or convictions of at least eight men accused of possessing lewd, graphic and frequently violent images involving sex with children.

Now police and prosecutors who handle these cases are urging lawmakers to close a loophole in state law that allows suspects to escape prosecution if they viewed those images over the internet but didn’t actually download — and thus “possess” — them.
- If you viewed them, then they are also downloaded into your Internet browsers cache.

Under federal law it’s already illegal to view pornographic material involving anyone under the age of 18. But Vermont is one of 21 states that has not outlawed it in state statute (PDF). As a result, state prosecutors say it’s more difficult for them to secure child-porn convictions than it is for their federal counterparts.

A bill coming up for discussion this week in the Senate Judiciary Committee aims to change that. S.19 (PDF), sponsored by the committee’s chairman, Sen. Dick Sears (D-Bennington), would make it illegal to “access with intent to view” photos, videos or other depictions of sexual or lewd acts involving kids under 16.
- So what are the procedures to prove intent?

“The problem is that our current law is based on how people used to view child pornography, which is a magazine they would hold in their hand,” says Christina Rainville, chief deputy state’s attorney in Bennington County. “It doesn’t reflect the current reality of how child pornography is looked at today, which is by surfing the web.”

The Bennington County state’s attorney’s office was at the center of a high-profile child pornography investigation last year involving [name withheld], a fifth-grade teacher in Bennington who was charged with possession of child pornography on his school-issued computer. [name withheld] consistently maintained his innocence and his attorney claimed he never viewed any of the 17 graphic images involving sex acts with children that were discovered in his laptop’s temporary cache, or others found by his wife on [name withheld]'s home computer. He never downloaded the images.
- Exactly, if you accidentally view it by clicking some like, and it wasn't your intention to view it, this shows you can still be prosecuted for it.  So what is to stop some hacker, or country, planting viruses to force your computer to view or download child porn?  How do you prove intent?

Read the rest of the article

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NV - Woman falls victim to computer virus

Original Article

See the video at the link above.

03/29/2013

By Daniel Gutierrez

Las Vegas (KTNV) - There's a virus circulating on the Internet, that can cause some serious damage. The scary part is, even if you're targeted and know it's a scam, you may still fall victim. Action News anchor Tricia Kean shares one woman's story, in this Contact 13 consumer alert.

"I felt violated. I felt like someone had snuck into my house and taken everything," says Yasmin Bach of Indian Springs.

She says she can't believe it. It was last month when she says, a virus popped up on her computer.

"It flashed blue and the whole screen filled up with this very official looking, supposedly document, from the FBI," says Yasmin.

The message claimed the FBI had locked up Yasmin's computer because it was linked to illegal online activity, including the viewing of child porn and selling drugs. And she had now lost complete control of her computer, nothing worked.

"I was getting panicked. Until I got to the bottom and I saw to unfreeze your computer, immediately wire $200. And l thought wait a minute," says Yasmin.

She says she knew it was a scam. And she's right.

"The FBI will never contact you through use of an email, through the use of a computer. We will very rarely even call you," says David Schrom.

He's the FBI's Acting Supervisory Special Agent for the Las Vegas Division Cyber Squad. He says this virus, known as "ransomware" has been around for about a year. The scammer's goal is to scare you into sending them money. David says if you're targeted, it's important you react quickly.

"Turn off your computer right away or unplug it. You'll then want to get some help removing the malware that's on your computer. Don't do it yourself," says David.

But that's exactly what Yasmin did. She kept her computer plugged in and running, while trying to fix it herself.

"What happened then was it gave the hacker further access to completely clean everything of my computer and in front of my eyes everything disappeared. My programs, my pictures," says Yasmin.

Even though she knew it was a scam, Yasmin was still ripped off. The scammer had wiped everything off her computer. Everything was gone, including her social security number, credit card info and personal memories.

"Photographs that I lost, like of my daughters. I have a dog that died and he was on there. I want to get those pictures back," says Yasmin.

David says if you fall victim to a similar virus, be sure to protect yourself.

"File a complaint, if you will, with the credit bureaus, to state that you're a victim, potentially, of identity fraud and they'll provide some kind of protection in regards to your credit, for 90 days," says David.

As for Yasmin, she says she hasn't seen anything unusual with her credit. But she's afraid it's only a matter of time until her stolen information is used. So she's taking time to warn as many people as possible.

"When you become aware that anything is wrong with your computer, shut it off, unplug it. Immediately have it taken to a professional," says Yasmin.

So here's the Contact 13 bottom line. The FBI says it's important to properly protect your computer by always updating all of your software and getting a good anti-virus program. Although it's important to note, Yasmin had an anti-virus program.

And remember if you're the target of a similar scam, never wire funds to someone you don't know, because it's virtually impossible to track it down once it's gone.

And if you're the victim of any kind of computer scam, be sure to report it to the FBI.

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AL - Fmr. Millbrook police officer (Ronnie Neil Lipscomb) sentenced for child porn

Ronnie Neil Lipscomb

Original Article

04/02/2013

By John Shryock

WETUMPKA (WSFA) - A former officer with the Millbrook Police Department was sentenced to jail time Tuesday in regards to possession of child pornography.

Ronnie Neil Lipscomb, 44, was sentenced to 4 years, but the judge says he will spend 12 months in the Elmore County Jail.

Lipscomb was not employed as an officer with the Millbrook Police Dept. at the time of his arrest.

The judge ordered him to report to the Elmore County Jail by Friday, April 5.

Since Lipscomb was found guilty of possessing child porn, he will be required to register as a sex offender.

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MO - Public Safety or Endless Punishment? Should sex offenders be listed on a public registry for life?

Original Article

04/01/2013

By Virginia Young

[name withheld] fears he will forever occupy a shameful sliver of cyberspace known as the sex offender registry.

Type in his name in the state’s search engine, and you can see where he lives and works, the cars he drives, along with the crime he committed more than a decade ago: Possession of child pornography — then a misdemeanor.

The registry, [name withheld] said, has cost him jobs, prompted neighbors to distribute fliers about him, and led to his arrest on a trespassing charge last fall when dropping his teenage son off at school.

“At 25, my life basically was over,” said [name withheld], now 36.

[name withheld], however, sees hope in proposed changes to the registry that legislators are debating in Jefferson City.

A diverse smattering of groups — from law enforcement officials to victims advocates — have argued that the current registry, which requires most offenders to register for life, is too much of a blunt instrument.

“They’re all lumped into one category and they all get a life sentence,” said Rep. Don Phillips, R-Kimberling City.

Phillips, a retired highway patrolman, is sponsoring a bill that would keep minor offenses off the registry and allow nearly a third of the roughly 14,000 people on the registry to petition for removal from the list within the next 20 years.

A more far-reaching proposal, sponsored by Rep. Dave Hinson, R-St. Clair, would give all offenders on the list a chance to petition for removal from the list eventually. How long they have to wait would be determined by individual “risk assessment reports” done by mental health professionals.

Both bills have made it out of the House Crime Prevention and Public Safety Committee, leaving Republican legislative leaders to decide which bill to present to the full House.

Some lawmakers have qualms about loosening requirements for the registry. Rep. Kenneth Wilson, R-Smithville, and a former police chief, said he “spent a career defending the public, and I think we’ve absolutely ignored a segment of our public, that being the victim.”

The proposals come at time when states across the nation are taking hard looks at their registries.

Most are moving toward more stringent requirements to comply with federal guidelines, said Wayne Logan, a professor at Florida State University’s law school.

“There is a lot of flux right now,” said Logan, author of the book, “Knowledge as Power: Criminal Registration and Community Notification Laws in America.”

Logan said research into the effectiveness of public registries is limited, and offers mixed results.

One recent study showed that while registries can serve as a deterrent, Logan said, they can also promote recidivism by making life too difficult.

“They can never get out from that shadow,” he said.

Eleven years ago, [name withheld], a former Marine, had gotten in the habit of downloading large files of heavy metal music at work from the then popular file-sharing service called Morpheus.

But one day, a human resources officer at his company summoned him to a conference room where two detectives were waiting.

He was informed that images of children in sexual acts had been found on his computer. [name withheld] claimed it was accidental. The images, he said, were embedded in the music files he downloaded and he had no knowledge of their existence.

But prosecutors didn’t buy his story. [name withheld] was charged twice — once in St. Louis County and once in St. Charles County, where police found different images on a disc that he had brought home from work.

[name withheld] pleaded guilty in both instances in exchange for probation and suspended imposition of sentence. The crime, he was told, would never go on his record.
- They always tell you this to get you to plead guilty, even if you are innocent.  Never do this, take it to jury trial.

“I was young,” [name withheld] said. “I was naïve. I was scared.”

He now wishes he would have fought the charges.

Daniel Pelikan, the St. Charles County judge who presided over [name withheld]'s case, wrote in his order that “although the defendant did not intend to download and transfer the images to the compact disc, the discs were in the defendant’s custody and control.”

A few years later, new state and federal laws required [name withheld] to register as a sex offender.

Kim Kilgore, a St. Louis County assistant prosecutor who has specialized in sex crime cases for the past 10 years, said one of the images depicted a 4-year-old. And, she pointed out, they were found in a secret, password-protected file. Kilgore also said that according to a Hazelwood police report, [name withheld] admitted downloading the images.

“I don’t have a problem with him being on the sex offender registry,” she said.

But should he be on it for life?

“I think it’s a hard decision,” she said. “As a mom, why not? As a prosecutor, it’s very burdensome for the state to maintain a registry.”

TRIMMING THE LIST

To winnow the registry’s rolls, both bills (HB-462 and HB-589) in the Missouri House would group sex offenders into three tiers. But they would use different criteria.

Phillips’ bill would rely on the severity of the criminal charge.

People who fall in the least serious tier — convicted of crimes such as second-degree endangering the welfare of a child — could petition to get off the registry after 10 years. The second tier — those convicted of crimes such as second-degree statutory rape — could seek removal after 25 years.

The third tier would include people convicted of crimes such as forcible rape and sexual trafficking of a child. They could never get off the registry, unless they were juveniles when convicted. In that case, they could petition after 25 years.

The requests would be filed in the circuit courts where offenders were convicted. To be considered for removal, they could have no additional convictions or pending charges for sexual offenses or felonies, and they would need to have completed probation and parole, as well as a sex offender treatment program.

The Missouri Highway Patrol, which manages the list, calculated that Phillips’ bill would allow the immediate removal of about 631 people dubbed “Romeo and Juliet” offenders — generally older teenagers who had consensual sex with a minor. They would be exempted from registering if the victim was at least 14 years old and the offender was not more than four years older than the victim.

The patrol says an additional 1,111 offenders could petition immediately for removal. Over the next five years, 284 more people would be eligible. Over 20 years, 2,480 more could apply.

At a hearing in February, Phillips’ bill drew support from groups as diverse as the Missouri Sheriffs Association, the American Civil Liberties Union of Eastern Missouri and Missouri Kids First, a statewide organization that works to prevent child abuse.

“This is a very thoughtful response,” said Emily van Schenkhof, who lobbies for Missouri Kids First. “It really does protect children but highlights a public policy problem” with the registry.

Under the bill, juveniles convicted of sex crimes would still have to register but would not be part of the public list on the Internet.
- Nobody should be a part of an online shaming hit-list, it should be taken offline and used by police only!

County sheriffs lined up behind the bill, saying they have limited resources to track the growing list of offenders. Phillips’ bill “would make it easier to concentrate on the more dangerous offenders,” said Andrea Luntsford, a detective with the Boone County Sheriff’s Department.

MENTAL HEALTH TESTS

The alternative approach — Hinson’s bill — would use mental health exams to determine where offenders should fall in the three tiers. People deemed low-risk could apply to get off the registry in five years. Even people in the most serious tier would be eligible after 25 years, instead of facing lifetime registration.

Supporters of Hinson’s bill said it would inject science into the process and provide more meaningful information to the public, which has become numb to the registry because it includes so many people who are not real threats.
- Inject science?  If you did that in the first place, then you'd not have the registry or residency laws, since science & many studies show that they do not do what you think they do.

Sister Mary Ann McGivern, who represented the Missouri Association for Social Welfare at a recent legislative hearing, said many people on the list are unlikely to pose a risk. Some exposed themselves or peeked through windows, she said. Others possessed child pornography or had sex with a younger girlfriend when they were 18.

The registry is “a lifetime punishment for a set of behaviors most of us don’t understand,” said McGivern, who is a Sister of Loretto from St. Louis.

Critics said a new state bureaucracy would be needed to handle the risk assessments required under Hinson’s bill. A fiscal note said the cost to the state was “unknown but considered to be significant, exceeding $100,000 per year.”

Also, the state would no longer be in compliance with the federal Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act, so Missouri stands to lose federal grants. Those grants have provided $637,905 over the last three years. Much of the money funded grants to sheriffs to buy items such as digital cameras and computer equipment.

Hinson countered that sex offenders would shoulder the cost of the mental health appraisals, which he estimated would likely be “no more than a couple hundred dollars” apiece.
- And that's a couple hundred dollars many of them do not have, due to the laws you are pushing!

He also pointed to a study that estimated the current sex offender registry costs the state and local governments nearly $5 million — for example, by sending people who fail to register back to prison.
- In many cases we've seen, people get more time in prison for failure to register than the original crime.

To fight for Hinson’s approach, some offenders and their families have organized a group, St. Peters-based Missouri Citizens for Reform, and hired a lobbyist.

“This is the only crime in America that’s punished endlessly,” said Sharie Keil, a member of Citizens for Reform.

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MA - Former police dispatcher (Raymond Edward Kish) sentenced to five years for possessing child pornography

Raymond Edward Kish

Original Article

03/28/2013

By Michael Hewlett

A former dispatcher with the Winston-Salem Police Department was sentenced Thursday to five years in federal prison for possessing child pornography.

But Raymond Edward Kish, a former U.S. Marine who helped with rescue efforts in the aftermath of the Sept. 11 attacks on the Pentagon, said in U.S. District Court that he was never interested in child pornography. His addiction was to adult pornography that started when he was 8 years old and was molested by a relative.

Kish, 35, said in court that he has struggled with his addiction to adult pornography for 27 years, and since his arrest has gone to counseling to deal with that and the sexual abuse he endured as a child.

J.D. Byers, his attorney, said Kish had used a file-sharing program called Limewire to download adult pornography to his computer. But that program also would download child pornography, according to Byers. When Kish discovered this was happening, he anonymously contacted the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and he would routinely delete child pornography that was downloaded to his computer. When he was arrested last year, he had been out of town for a few days and had not had a chance to delete the child pornography that authorities found on his computer, Byers said.

“It’s a shame that he is going to spend years in prison,” Byers said in court.

Read the entire article here

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MI - Ex-Royal Oak officer (Michael Stephen Smith) sentenced to prison (one year) for child porn on home computer

Michael Stephen Smith

Original Article

Tell us, why is it that when a police officer is convicted of a sex crime, in many cases, they get a small sentence compared to the average citizen, as in this case?

03/27/2013

OAKLAND COUNTY - A former Royal Oak police officer was sentenced to one year in prison for the child pornography found on his home computer.

Michael Stephen Smith, 41, was sentenced Wednesday in Oakland County Circuit court.

Smith, who lived in Holly, worked as a police officer for Royal Oak until he was fired in January 2012.

Michigan's Attorney General Bill Schuette charged Smith with 20 counts related to the pornography.

Schuette said from September 2011 through January 2012, Smith downloaded and possessed pornography on his home computer.

The images were discovered through an online investigation by the Flint internet crimes against children task force (ICA), which uses sophisticated technology to identify online child pornography in Michigan. Smith was also charged for sending images to other users through a public internet file-sharing network.

In addition to the jail time, Judge James Alexander also ordered Smith to attend sex-addict anonymous meetings, along with 5 years of probation.

See Also:

• Former Royal Oak police Officer (Michael Smith) charged with child porn possession will stand trial

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MA - Waltham police officer (Paul Manganelli) faces child pornography charges

Paul Manganelli

Original Article

See the video at the above link, or the video below.

03/26/2013

BOSTON - A Waltham police officer who won a $1 million lottery prize two years ago is facing federal child pornography charges after his arrest by the FBI.

Paul Manganelli is facing arraignment in Boston Federal Court Tuesday afternoon on charges of possession of child pornography, according to a spokeswoman for the U.S. Attorney's Office.

Manganelli claimed a $1 million prize on April 19, 2011, in the "$100,000 a Year for Life" instant game, a spokeswoman for the Massachusetts State Lottery said.

Manganelli also works as a DJ, NewsCenter 5's Kathy Curran reported. He is listed on the BestBostonDJ.com website as an entertainer and owner of the company, which advertises parties for children.

"We have played parties for 20 kids and we have played events for 500 plus kids for local elementary schools and organizations," the website reads.

"The allegations are disgusting. My thoughts are with his family," said Waltham Mayor Jeannette McCarthy.

At the time of his lottery win, Manganelli said that he planned to use the winnings to buy a home, pay off debt and set up college funds for his children.

Acting Police Chief Keith MacPherson said in a statement that Manganelli’s actions were his own and put some distance between the department and the officer.

“The alleged off-duty conduct of one employee is not a reflection of the Waltham Police Department as a whole. The Waltham Police Department is dedicated to continuing the professional service that the city of Waltham has grown to expect and deserve.”

Video Link

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UK - Hundreds of North children arrested over sex claims

Original Article

This just goes to show you how out of hand this whole sex offender hysteria has become.

We wonder if all the people in the general public who say we should shoot sex offenders on the spot, or worse, if they'd be okay with murdering a child who has been slammed with the label? What if that child was your own?

03/17/2013

Hundreds of children have been arrested in the North over sex crimes, with experts blaming online pornography

A shocking number of children have been arrested in connection with sex crimes in the North, with experts blaming online pornography.

In some cases those arrested were as young as six, a Sunday Sun investigation has revealed.

Our probe shows how almost 500 children aged 17 and under were arrested for sexual offences according to police data, 20% of which were formal investigations into reports of rape.

Of those arrested, more than 140 were 13 or younger - with 40 of those being on suspicion of rape.

Charity bosses told the Sunday Sun that they have seen a national trend of an increase in these types of crimes.

One North MP last night said the alarming figures painted a picture of “childhood innocence destroyed”.

However, only a handful of those arrested were convicted of offences. Nationally, only 400 people aged between 10 and 17 were convicted of sexual offences between September 2011 and September 2012.

This amounts to just 7% of the 5,700 convictions for sexual crimes committed by offenders of all ages over the same time period.

This is because a large number of them are below the age of criminality, which in this country is 10, whereas in some cases the accused will have accepted cautions, or the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) will not have pursued a prosecution.

Experts blamed the shocking figures on the increasing availability of hardcore pornography on phones and the internet.

A spokesperson for the NSPCC said children they work with often appear to be acting out what they have watched.

And young people were more exposed to the “powerful influence” of online pornography than ever before, according to Pat Buckley, NSPCC service centre manager for Newcastle and Middlesbrough.

She said: “There does appear to be a link between incidents of this nature and watching hardcore porn, although more longer term research is needed."

“We should also not forget that the young people perpetrating this serious abuse have often themselves experienced significant emotional deprivation and other forms of abuse.”

While the vast majority of those reported for sexual assault in the North were boys or male teens, a handful were teenage girls. Other offences investigated among the region’s children included making indecent photographs, indecent exposure and incest.

In more than 100 of the incidents probed by police, the alleged victim was 10 or under.

North Tyneside MP Mary Glindon said the Sunday Sun’s investigation, in particular the cases where those arrested had not even reached adolescence, painted a picture of “childhood innocence destroyed”.

Mrs Glindon, who sits on an all-parliamentary party group on body image, argued the mainstream media also had to take some responsibility for the disturbing figures.

“It’s not just the internet,” she claimed. “Even with something as popular as the X-Factor, everything’s so sexual. It leads children into thinking, what’s next? Young children just don’t look like young children anymore,” the Labour MP said.

Simon Hackett is professor of applied social sciences at Durham University.

He has led academic research into children who have sexually abused, and has worked as a practitioner in child welfare. “In my research, 50% of victims had experienced abuse themselves.”

“If you’re trying to find trigger behaviour, looking at porn has been a very significant influence.”

“Early sexualisation can be a trigger for this kind of offending behaviour.”

Northumbria reported 273 incidents of youths being arrested for alleged sexual assaults against people under 18 over three years, while in Cleveland the figure was 71.

A spokesperson for the force said the number of children under 13 arrested for sexual offences had decreased over the last three years, though figures across the North remained steady.

North Yorkshire reported 79 youths arrested for sexual assault, while Cumbria made 56 arrests. Durham only supplied information for last year, when 22 arrests were made.

Adults who are concerned about behaviour towards a child or young person should call police or social services or contact the NSPCC on 0808 800 5000.

Confidential help for children is available from Childline on 0800 1111.

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