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Underage Cellphone Users Beware!

by Andrew McKinnon on November 1, 2008 at 12:38 PM


A 15-year-old Newark, Ohio girl was arrested last Friday for allegedly sending nude cell phone photos of herself to classmates. The Licking Valley High School student spent the weekend in jail and on Monday pleaded deny, the juvenile equivalent of not guilty, to two charges: the illegal use of a minor in nudity-oriented material (a second degree felony) and possession of criminal tools (a fifth degree felony).

The defendant could be labeled a Tier I sex offender and be required to register annually for 10 years. According to Ohio law, 2907.323(A)(3), anyone possessing material that shows a minor in a state of nudity is guilty of a fifth-degree felony. State Rep. Jay Hottinger, R-Newark helped write the state's Adam Walsh Act that organizes sex offenders into three tiers, mandating that Tier 3 offenders, the most serious, must check in with authorities every three months for the remainder of the offender's life. Representative Hottinger says that this case was not something the legislature envisioned and that the Judge will have flexibility on the verdict and whether the defendant will have to register as a sex offender.

Authorities will not identify the girl by name because she is a minor and her alleged offenses are not violent. The juvenile Division of the Licking County Court of Common Pleas placed the girl, a foster child, under house arrest, barring her from using a cell phone or having access to the Internet. The Licking County Prosecutor Ken Oswalt said Wednesday that the investigation into the incident remains open.

This case highlights how legislators and law enforcement officials are grappling with the moral dimensions of young people's use of sophisticated technology. Young people have, at their disposal, tools that make a high level of interactivity and creative use possible. Should parents and authorities limit the access to certain technology features, like the camera phone or will that just encourage the youth to commit an act he or she would otherwise never considered?

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