Sexual Exploitation of Children Growing—Enforcement and Charges Increasing
An Increase of 33 Percent in Charges for Child Pornography
First of a five part series.
Special Investigative Feature
Derek Armstrong, Chief Crime Correspondent,
8,000 people have been charged since 2006 for possession or distribution of child pornography in the US. Since 2008, 1742 child victims were identified or rescued. 500,000 tips are received on the Cyber Tip Line relating to Internet Crimes Against Children. One child out of every seven children receives a sexual message online. In the last year alone, 60 percent of children were exposed to violence.
With these horrifying statistics, and epidemic growth in missing children — one child missing every 40 seconds in America (see story here>>) — programs such as Project Safe Child and Amber Alert are critical in safeguarding children.
20 Percent of Girls Will be Victimized Before Adulthood
One in five girls and one out ten boys will be sexually victimized before they reach adulthood, according to D. Finkelhor Current Information on the Scope and Nature of Child Sexual Abuse from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children.
Other findings in current research by David Finkelhor, Kimberly J. Mitchell and Janis Wolak for the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (in Online Victimization of Youth:Five Years Later):
- one in seven youths online received sexual solicitation over the internet
- 4 percent received aggressive sexual solicitation, including money, gifts and phone calls
- 27 percent of exposure to sexual material was due to a parent or guardian
Project Safe Child Helped Bring Charges Against 2289 Child Pornographers in 2008
Government, law-enforcers, media and the public are fighting back, resulting in increased charges against abusers and rescues of victims.
In the last full year measured, Project Safe Child, the innovative program of the US Department of Justice, was directly credited with 2289 indictments, an increase of 33 percent since 2006 when the program began. The Department’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, in partnership with US Attorney’s and local law enforcers, undertakes to apprehend and prosecute child abusers--often rescuing the victims.
Project Safe Child helped rescue 992 victims from sexual exploiters last year. Since November 2008, 1742 child victims of pornography crimes were identified—many of them rescued, due to the activities of Project Safe Child.
60 Percent of Children Exposed to Violence in Past Year
The need for child safety advocates increases with every year. According to current information from Crimes Against Children Research Center, 60 Percent of all children in the US are exposed to violence directly or indirectly. The same research center stated “Nearly one-half of the children and adolescents surveyed were assaulted at least once in the past year, and more than 1 in 10 were injured as a result.”
Ten Percent of children in their surveys were victims of mistreatment, including physical or emotional abuse, neglect, or family abductions.
Over 8,000 Pornographers Charged Since 2006
Since 2006, over 8,000 people, residing in the US, have been charged with possesion or distribution of child porn after a coordinated effort of Project Safe Child, the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), the FBI, Immigrations and Custom Enforcement and US Postal Service.
Cyber Tip Line Receives 500,000 Tips Regarding Pornography
Part of the credit for increasing enforcement also goes to services such as the Cyber Tip Line. Internet Service Providers (ISPs) are very aggressive in reporting abuse, using the Cyber Tip Line. Together with other programs, such as the Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) taskforce, close to 11,000 individuals have been arrested for “intent on sexually abusing children.” In 2007, 2350 arrests were made, together with 10,500 forensic examinations, under the investigations of ICAC. Cyber Tip Line>>
225,000 Calls Received to 1-800-THE-LOST
Media joined with agencies and special interest groups by donating public awareness media space for campaigns. A major public service campaign began in November, 2008, with television spots and newspaper ads targeting predators and parents in English and Spanish. View here>>
In 2007, the Department of Justice cooperated with the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) and the Ad Council, to release an Online Sexual Exploitation ad campaign focused on teenage girls being lured online, funded by $188 million in donated media space. The 1-800-THE-LOST phone number received 225,000 calls.
One in Seven Children Receives Sexual Messages Online
According to Project Safe Child, one in seven children will receive a “sexual message” online. Their campaign is designed to encourage parents to monitor their children’s activities.
Project Safe Child was originally launched publicly in 2006 in response to growing numbers of sexual predators who victimize children.
Online Predators Growing
With one in seven children receiving sexual messages, and easy methods for predators to capture your children’s trust — typically posing as other minors — it is relatively easy for a victim to be lured into dangerous situations. Internet methods can also easily reveal location, even exact address of potential victims to predators.
Prosecution and Enforcement Increasing
Project Safe Child helped increase the numbers of prosecutions dramatically and more victims are being identified to law enforcement. In 2006, the first year of Project Safe Child, 1657 cases against 1760 defendants were filed. In 208, the number climbed dramatically to 2289 defendants.
59 regional task forces, funded by the Department of Justice, focus on “computer-facilitated child sexual exploitation” according to Project Safe Child documents.
Sexual Exploitation of Children
The Exploited Children Division of the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children was formed in 1996 under a grand from US Congress. It was designed to be the central resource for information on the frightening issue for all stakeholders: law enforcement, the public, parents and the media.
Types of Exploitation
Possession, Manufacture, and Distribution of Child Pornography (with linked resources):
Sex Tourism Involving Children
Extra-Familial Child Sexual Molestation
Online Enticement of Children for Sexual Acts
Unsolicited Obscene Material Sent to a Child
Misleading Words or Digital Images on the Internet
Amber Alerts Help Find Missing Children
Amber Alerts--a cooperative initiative of government, law-enforcers and media--have also resulted in hundreds of children being returned unharmed, a small but growing percentage of the 800,000 reported missing each year.
The combination of multiple programs, with unprecedented cooperation of government, non-profit groups, parents, associations, law enforcers and the media have proven effective in improving child safety, although the statistics paint a frightening picture of increasing child safety issues.
What is Child Pornography?
Federal Law 18 U.S.C. §2256: “Child pornography is any visual depiction, including any photograph, film, video, picture, or computer or computer-generated image or picture, whether made or produced by electronic, mechanical, or other means, of sexually explicit conduct.”
Watch for PART 2 in this provocative Special Investigation in January, 2010 in Crimes and Books.
Other Helpful Programs and Associations (links)
Resources available through the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children include:
9-1-1 Call Center Resources. The National Center for Missing & Exploited Children provides technical assistance, training, and educational materials to help 9-1-1 Call Centers effectively respond to reports of missing and/or sexually exploited children.
Attempted Abductions. The National Center for Missing & Exploited Children analysts confirm and track incidents of attempted abductions of children, as well as, Sexual Assaults, Indecent Exposures, Short-term Abductions (Abduct & Release) and any other suspicious incidents involving children.
Case Analysis. Using the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children databases, external sources, and geographic databases, our analysts track leads, identify patterns among cases, and help coordinate investigations by linking cases together.
CyberTipline®. The National Center for Missing & Exploited Children operates this Congressionally-mandated reporting website for child sexual exploitation, including child pornography and online enticement among others.
Child Victim Identification Program. The National Center for Missing & Exploited Children serves as the national clearinghouse for child pornography cases and the main point of contact to international agencies about victims of child pornography.
Family Advocacy Services. The National Center for Missing & Exploited Children provides technical assistance, referrals, and crisis intervention services for families, law enforcement, and family advocacy agencies.
Hotline: 1-800-THE-LOST® (1-800-843-5678). The National Center for Missing & Exploited Children operates the Hotline 24 hours/7 days a week to record lead and sighting information from the public, help professionals and families searching for missing children, and assist in sexual exploitation cases.
Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Training and Technical Assistance. The ICAC Training and Technical Assistance Program supports state and local law enforcement agencies' activities to combat Internet crimes against children.
Legal Resources. The National Center for Missing & Exploited Children provides technical assistance to prosecutors and civil attorneys who represent children, law enforcement, state and federal legislators, and other professionals combating child exploitation.
Project ALERT. The National Center for Missing & Exploited Children coordinates Project Alert, America's Law Enforcement Retiree Team, which is comprised of skilled, retired, law enforcement officers who provide free, on-site assistance to active law enforcement.
Missing-Child Clearinghouse Program. Each of the 50 states, plus the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, U.S. Virgin Islands, Canada, and the Netherlands, provides resources for missing children, their families, and the professionals who serve them. The National Center for Missing & Exploited Children provides training and technical assistance in cases of missing and sexually exploited children.
Sex Offender Tracking. The National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC) provides analytical resources to law enforcement in their efforts to locate noncompliant registered sex offenders by using NCMEC databases, external sources, and geographic databases.
Team Adam. Team Adam sends experienced investigative specialists to the sites of serious child abductions and child sexual exploitation cases to advise and assist local investigators.
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