Distinction?

This story, entitled “Student Faces Porn Charges…” comes from Craig Civale, a reporter for WFAA-TV in Dallas/Fort Worth, and concerns a 13-year-old boy in Denton County who was arrested and charged after another [female] student sent him (and other male students) a naked picture of herself.

First of all, it’s great how they call her an eighth grader and him a 13-year-old boy like there is a big age difference between them and that it should be a huge deal.

Second, I find it hard to believe that a 13-year-old “doesn't understand what pornography is,” as the mother tried to say. That is just delusional.

And third, if they’re going to charge the boy, they should charge the girl for creating and distributing porn. And even then, unless they can prove the boy had intent to receive the picture, they can’t charge him as a recipient of child porn. Otherwise it’s a fairly serious breach of the intent of the law. Exactly how did he have any control over what was texted to him? SHE initiated the contact, so why is he the one to be punished and potentially charged?

There needs to be a clause in all the child pornography laws that allow for concerned individuals within the same age group. They are both minors. Two 13-year-olds sending nude pictures is not child porn; it’s just the modern way these kids are experimenting with their sexuality, like it or not, though that is beside the point. This girl took a picture of herself willingly and of her own volition. She was not exploited.

So this eighth grade boy faces being labeled a sex offender at such a young age for some unsolicited cell phone pictures sent from a fellow classmate--something seemingly blown out of proportion. This is just one of those misguided youth mistakes that you’re supposed to learn from and move on before you get out in the real world where it actually matters. Sit them down, confiscate their phones, delete the offensive image(s), give them (or just the girl who distributed the images) detention/in-school suspension, and consider it a life lesson. Maybe even disable [photo] text messaging services for the offenders, or how about all children under 18? Because is it really a vital necessity? Not at all. Why do 13-year-olds need cell phones, let alone camera phones, at school?

Somehow, there needs to be distinctions made over what defines a sex offender. Two 13-year-olds sending each other pictures is really not much different than two 25-year-olds doing the same. If one of the persons involved was an adult, then it would be a different story. This boy doesn’t deserve to be categorized on the same level as other offenders, and really, the law should not have been involved in this at all.