Mother Behind Megan's Law Speaks out Against Branding 'Sexting' Children as Child Pornographers

The current insane trend of charging young people (usually girls) with various forms of child pornography for posting or texting sexual images of themselves has reached such a nadir that the very woman who brought about Megan's Law (which forces convicted sex offenders to register their address with the state every ninety days) is now against it. The case that has caused such outcry involves a fourteen-year old girl who is being charged with 'distribution of child pornography' for posting 30 explicit images of herself on My Space.

Quoted from The Associated Press -
Maureen Kanka -- whose daughter, Megan, became the law's namesake after she was raped and killed at age 7 in 1994 by a twice-convicted sex offender -- blasted authorities for charging the 14-year-old girl.

The teen needs help, not legal trouble, she said. "This shouldn't fall under Megan's Law in any way, shape or form. She should have an intervention and counseling, because the only person she exploited was herself." If convicted, the unlucky teenager could face seventeen years in jail and/or be forced to register as a sex offender for the rest of her life.

Yeah, that'll teach her. I wrote about this just over a month ago. I'll say now what I said then. Here's the simple version of why this is stupid beyond belief. I have a 19-month old daughter. I certainly would prefer she not send sexually explicit photos of herself to her boyfriend (or to a social networking site) when she's fourteen. But, I'm far more afraid of her being branded as a sex offender, with all the goodies that go along with that (having to register, being forced to live in designated areas, being stigmatized, basically being removed from the fabric of society) for engaging in said adolescent sexual misbehavior. And going after kids for being dumb kids in the name of protecting kids is the pinnacle of illogical.

I've never been a fan of Megan's Law. I feel that it amounts to punishment after incarceration and it makes it almost impossible for a convicted sex offender to make any kind of fresh start (thus make recidivism more likely, in my opinion). But it's nice to know that even Maureen Kanka knows that there should be a line between actual sex crime and juvenile misbehavior. As a father, things like this and that Connecticut school that just outlawed touching between students terrify me far more than peer pressure, drugs, or teen bullying. I can do all I can to teach my child to deal with irrational children, but what the hell do I tell them about dealing with irrational, authoritarian adults who can wreck their lives without a second thought?

Comments

[HappyMarsden]

Iv'e said it before and I'll say it again: Americans are INSANE!!!!!! to support and tolerate laws like this. A 14 yr. old girl is busy learning about history, geography, math, etc. She is not taught the intricacies of the law system, in order to know that such laws forbidding her from sharing pictures of herself exist, and that she can go to prison for 17 years for sharing pictures of herself!! Geez, yan.ks, let children grow up and learn about laws and responsibilities, before you expect them to be as responsible as adults!

[degenerate1991]

The problem is with our legal system: it is easy to get laws passed as knee-jerk reactions to emotion (such as Megan's Law), but damn near impossible to get them repealed.

[ldavis24]

the only thing I disagree with in your very astute argument is that punishing the sex offenders (because they are being punished you are correct in that) will lead to them committing the same crimes again.

My husband and I were talking about this a couple of days ago, expecting our first child it has brought this kind of stuff to the forefront of our minds (we also saw one of the convicted sex offenders in a restaurant that they parade across our public access channel, including their address and crimes committed!).

If a personal is capable of molesting or raping anyone let alone a child, in the first place then obviously there is something in their brain that is not going to be "cured" or "rehabilitated". If they thought it was alright in the first place or were incapable of controlling themselves they do not have that switch that says this is wrong, I shouldn't do this. I don't think posting their addresses is going to make them more likely to commit another crime. I think they are already more likely to commit another crime because they thought it was acceptable in the FIRST PLACE!

I am not saying I know how to handle a convicted sex offender who has served their time and is released, just something I have been musing about.

I do agree charging that teenage girl could very well end up ruining her life, I think for the most part your article is spot on!

[vim876]

Sex offenders aren't all the perpetrators of disgusting crimes against innocent children. For those that are, we can debate the policy. But some 'sex offenders' are people in their late teens and very early twenties being prosecuted for consensual sexual acts with their peers. Laws must be made to distinguish people who molest and exploit children from young people engaged in consensual exploration of their sexuality.

[LeftRight]

See, Scott, the problem is that you think logically, and that's just forbidden when it comes to sex in America!