Sexting: Educate, don't prosecute, teens caught sending nude cell phone photos

Star Ledger
Editorial
July 23, 2009

Assemblywoman Pamela Lampitt (D-Camden) has proposed legislation that would encourage education, not prosecution, for teenagers who send nude photos of themselves via cell phone and the internet. The bill calls for common sense by prosecutors -- and lawmakers should approve it when they reconvene.

The bill would require teens facing such charges to enroll in a program, to be developed by the Attorney General's office, that would teach them about the potential ramifications of engaging in risky internet behavior. Companion bills would require schools and cell-phone stores to hand out information on the dangers of sending sexually explicit images.

The well-publicized case of a 14-year-old Clifton girl who faced charges of child pornography in March after posting naked pictures of herself on the social networking site MySpace highlighted the need to school teenagers in using good judgement on their phones and online.

In that case, the teenager could have faced a prison sentence and been required to register as a sex offender under Megan's Law. Wisely, the Passaic County Prosecutor's Office decided to drop the charges provided she completes six months of counseling. At the same time, an overzealous Pennsylvania prosecutor tried to bring child pornography charges against three teenage girls who sent cell-phone pictures of themselves in their underwear. Thankfully, a federal judge blocked the move.

The National Center for Missing and Exploited children has reported a rise in cases of teenagers who place semi-nude or nude photos of themselves on the web. One in five teenagers engages in "sexting," according to a survey released in December by the National Campaign to Prevent Teenage and Unplanned Pregnancy and CosmoGirl.com.

Mandating education for teenagers for committing such offenses makes good sense. Prosecuting them makes no sense at all.