Due to the prevalence of naked “selfies” and “sexting,” Colorado has seen an increase in sexual exploitation of a child and child pornography cases.
“Selfie” is a word that has developed over the past few years and refers to a photo that a person takes of him or herself using a cellphone camera. While selfie photos are often innocent in nature, naked or sexually explicit selfies can get people into trouble with the law.
A 16-year-old girl learned this the hard way recently when she was arrested and charged with distributing child pornography after posting naked selfies on Twitter. Although the teen could face felony charges for her actions, it is likely that she will be let off with a warning or probation.
Distributing child pornography is an extremely serious charge in the state of Colorado and elsewhere, which is why it’s important for parents to talk to their teenagers about the risks involved with sharing nude “selfies” and other sexually explicit content online or via text message, also known as “sexting.”
In addition to facing legal charges, many young people fail to understand that what they share on the Internet can be taken of context and is nearly impossible to erase. Photos that are text messaged to other young people can easily get into the wrong hands.
To reiterate, young people can face serious charges for their actions, whether they are the sending photos of themselves, sending photos of others or asking for the photos.
For example, a girl under the age of 18 who sends a naked or explicit text message to her boyfriend can technically be charged with sexual exploitation of a child in Colorado because she is a minor. If the boyfriend responds in a soliciting manner, he too could face sexual exploitation of a child charges.
Any of these charges could potentially ruin a person’s life, which is why it is so important that they are taken seriously.
Source: Social News Daily, “16-Year-Old Arrested For Child Porn After Posting ‘Selfie’ Pics On Twitter,” James Kosur, Feb. 5, 2014