subject: The Challenges Of The District Attorney [print this page] District attorneys represent the public that elect them. They not only have an obligation to their profession and ensuring punishment is doled out to those who refuse to follow the law, but they also have a responsibility to the same public that put them in office. But what happens when the law has yet to catch up with technology and the ones taking advantage of that gap are teenagers? To what degree of accountability must they be held to when poor choices and even poorer taste collide with some of the most shameful crimes in a modern society? A. Harrison Barnes, a famed career coach and founder of LegalAuthority.com says these crimes are the new phenomenon known as "sexting". It has district attorneys, school districts, parents and the teens themselves gearing up for a battle that could result in permanent damage to a kid before he even graduates high school.
The battle, says the LegalAuthority.com founder, is the adamancy some lawyers are showing in classifying sexting as not only a felony, but as a sex crime. The repercussions are tremendous and at least one case in Rhode Island appears to be on the forefront. Currently, there is a fourteen year old girl who is facing major legal problems because she opted to take a compromising photo of herself, with her cell phone, and then forward it to her boyfriend. In doing so, she met the same burdens as those who are charged with child pornography in most states. A. Harrison Barnes says she was in possession of an underage child posing sexually and she sent it to her boyfriend, which means she distributed it. Her parents, naturally, are horrified, but it's what happened next that is surely causing a lot of sleepless nights.
The photos landed in a district attorney's email box. From there, he contacted law enforcement and put out an arrest warrant for her. While it's unlikely the more serious charges won't be brought against her, it has caused this young girl untold shame and has turned her life upside down. The entire nation is now watching to see what kind of precedence is being set. At some point, says the LegalAuthority.com founder, there will be a teen who will become the example.
Meanwhile, attorneys are watching the legalities unfold and are looking for ways that can keep their own clients, some of whom are teenagers, from being charged as sexual predators. These kids have no concept of what this means for them long term. Most legal minds, and certainly the majority of parents, believe a better solution is to educate these kids on what happens when an image is released via technology. One psychologist said, "It's forever out there in cyber space." That's true, but these images can easily prevent kids, once they've become adults, from getting a well paying job or an acceptance letter into their college of choice.
For now, the debates continue and law firms are quickly putting together case law, what little there is, in an effort to defend what's sure to become a growing number of teens facing major charges just as they're beginning to live their lives.
