Wal-Mart, Parents Spar Over Child Pornography
By Stacie D. Rumenap
October 19. 2009
Page 2 of 2
The Department of Justice estimates that at any one time the Internet contains more than one million pornographic images of children, and more than 200 new images are posted daily with the majority of incidents involving children 6 to 11 years old. It is also estimated that some child pornography websites receive more than one million visits in a single month, and that victims are becoming younger and the images more graphic and violent.
Fortunately, child pornography prosecutions and convictions have increased. Last year, U.S. attorneys' offices brought forward over 2,000 computer-based child exploitation cases, the vast majority against child pornography viewers, who mostly pleaded guilty. That was more than double the number five years earlier.
In 1990, Congress criminalized the possession of child pornography, and later passed legislation to significantly increase penalties for these offenses. In 1991, a person with no criminal history who possessed violent child pornography images and movies and shared them with others would face a maximum of two years in prison in federal cases. Today, that same person could face more than 20 years.
With statistics like these, kudos to Wal-Mart for raising a red flag. The vigilant eye of everyday citizens is perhaps one of the best ways to give children the support they need in dangerous situations. As a society, it is imperative we put into place proper mechanisms and procedures to avoid false accusations, but our ultimate goal should always be to provide protection to our nation's most vulnerable citizens.
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Stacie D. Rumenap is the executive director of Stop Child Predators, a non-profit organization in Washington, DC that combats the sexual exploitation of children and protects the rights of crime victims. For more information, visit www.stopchildpredators.org.
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Note -- The opinions expressed in this column are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the opinions, views, and/or philosophy of GOPUSA. >> Back -- Page 1 2
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