Child porn charges could bring civil penalties in Florida

Posted: Tue Feb 19, 2008 6:08 pm

Child porn charges could bring civil penalties in Florida

Posted on Tue, Feb. 19, 2008

By DAVID FISCHER
Associated Press Writer

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. -- People who distribute or even download child pornography could soon face civil action on top of criminal charges.

Florida's attorney general announced a bill on Tuesday that would allow victims of child pornography in the state to sue the people who download and transmit their images for no less than $150,000 per photograph. That amount could be even higher for people convicted of distribution.

"It's needed because many times we are getting minimal sentences in the child pornography area, dealing with the photographs," Attorney General Bill McCollum said. "And parents and children who are the victims of these kinds of crimes in these kinds of settings ought to be able to get civil relief from those who can afford it."

Similar legislation already exists at the federal level, but the proposed bill (SB 1442, HB 605) would make Florida the first state to allow victims of child pornography to sue when charges go through state courts. The legislation also would allow the attorney general's office to pursue the cases on behalf of the victims at their request.

The bill was sponsored by Sen. Paula Dockery, R-Lakeland, and Rep. David Rivera, R-Miami. It will be considered during the legislative session, which begins next month.

There are more than 30 children who have been identified as victims of Florida-based child pornography, according to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children.

The bill would focus primarily on victims from Florida, but a database that would be created by the attorney general's office would be available to victims from all over the country, said Maureen Horkan, who heads the attorney general's CyberCrime Unit.

The bill would provide an electronic notification system to inform victims about pending cases that involve their photographs. It would allow them to maintain their privacy while still being heard and considered in criminal court cases. Horkan said the system will hopefully serve as a model for other states.

Child pornography is more than just naked pictures of children, and it's important for people to understand what it really is, Horkan said. It involves explicit sexual acts being performed on young children and even infants, she said.

"It's really heinous, and the images are horrible," Horkan said. "They are really child abuse."

Other proposed legislation was announced on Tuesday that would fight the exploitation of minors by teen modeling companies. While not reaching the level of child pornography, companies photograph young girls in provocative poses and post those pictures on members-only Web sites, said Greg Giordano, a legislative assistant for the bill's sponsor, Sen. Mike Fasano, R-New Port Richey.

The new legislation (SB 1128, HB 559) would change the legal definition of obscenity and give prosecutors the ability to go after the companies, Giordano said.

http://www.miamiherald.com/775/story/425047.html