Prosecutor Warns That Rise in Student Connectivity Increases Dangers From Child Pornographers, Online Predators

INDIANAPOLIS, Sept. 23 /PRNewswire/ -- With students firmly back into the swing of classes and increasing the amount of time they spend online, a seasoned Midwestern prosecutor is warning parents of the inherent dangers the Internet poses to children.

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Equipped with powerful computers, scanners and servers, child predators and pornographers have claimed a large share of seedy and secretive online activity. Today, law enforcement leadership, including Marion County Prosecutor Carl Brizzi of Indianapolis, are mounting serious and strategic responses to the growth of online child pornography and sex crimes committed via online means.

Through a process of education and eradication, Prosecutor Brizzi now perseveres to spread his message and share his success stories as best practices for others throughout the United States.

"Once restricted to Polaroid cameras and crude print publications, online sex predators have found a cozy and anonymous way to spread their trade," Brizzi said. "It is our responsibility to help prevent the children and families of our communities from falling victim to these criminals."

Working with national partners, Prosecutor Brizzi and his team have been able to make strides in protecting central Indiana's youth. The reality is, these crimes happen everywhere every day. Prosecutor Brizzi is reaching out nationally to provide his team's expert processes and case results as examples of how the spread of online sex crimes can be slowed and stopped.

Prosecutor Brizzi has a core staff who carry out the singular goal of investigating and prosecuting Indiana's most serious criminals. Detectives side by side with prosecutors have immersed themselves for the past six years, using contemporary technology to uncover potential sex offenders via the Internet and stopping them from potentially hurting his or her next victim.

Online Sex Solicitation of Minors

About four years ago, the prosecutor's office introduced an online sting program to find these potential pedophiles in and around Indianapolis. They would log in to online chat rooms using fake usernames and profiles, pretending to be 14- or 15-year-old girls or boys. Prior to 2002, it was not a crime to solicit an undercover police officer who posed as a minor for the purpose of a sting operation. Senate Bill 482, which Prosecutor Brizzi helped pass in 2002, closed that loophole and sting operations are now a common tool used by law enforcement. In these sting operations, the detectives would "chat" with others online, and if conversations with adult men or women would turn in the direction of sexual innuendo or conversation and the adult pursued the conversation to the point of breaking state statute of soliciting a child over the Internet, the person was then pursued and charged with a C felony – or more, if the person showed up for a staged "meeting" with the "minor."

Child Pornography

Since February 2010, the investigation team has transitioned into a different way of using the Internet to find and charge online sex criminals – those who possess and disseminate child pornography. The investigators spend hours each day cruising websites and file-sharing software for child pornography, linking the files back to each possessor and disseminator. Since inception, the team has arrested several people, with even more search warrants ready to serve.

Sexting

With the support of Indiana State Sen. Jim Merritt, Prosecutor Brizzi has taken the first step in decriminalizing "sexting," or sending sexually explicit electronic messages or photos via electronic means – specifically cell phones, among teens. Bill 224 has gone through the Indiana Senate but has been held on the House floor to be pushed into a summer legislative study committee.

For more information on the Marion County Prosecutor's Office and its efforts against online sex crimes, visit http://www.indy.gov/eGov/County/Pros/Pages/home.aspx.

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Marion County Prosecutor's Office

SOURCE Marion County Prosecutor's Office