In recent years, an increasing number of minor distributors of child pornography are being identified online. Who, ultimately, are the victims and who are the perpetrators in such complex cases? Police authorities are confronted with the following problem: children and young people are themselves becoming distributors of nude photographs or videos of pornographic content via the internet.
Example
A successful acquittal obtained by our firm in a child pornography case before the Athens Mixed Jury Court: Acquittal Decision Child Pornography Mixed Jury Court
Explanatory video describing the most common cybercrimes
Research conducted by the Bavarian police has reached worrying conclusions. “Last year, the figures exceeded all limits,” according to the head of the criminological investigations team, Johannes Luff. “The figures change from year to year. There are even ages below ten,” while the number of unrecorded incidents may also be higher.
The “findings” usually emerge by chance – for example, when, in the course of investigations into drugs involving minor offenders, police officers may locate child pornography material on their mobile phones.
“This trend has been recorded for some years now,” notes the criminologist and specialist in cybercrime Thomas Gabriel Rüdiger from the Brandenburg Police Academy. “A key fact we now know about the field of cybercrime is that minors may be not only victims but also perpetrators.”
In Germany alone, the number of suspects under the age of 21 in offences related to child pornography has risen by 125%. In 2019, their number reached 7,584, while in 2018 the recorded suspects were 3,316.
Increased risks for children online
Even today, in-depth conversations are rarely held with children about what they may and may not do online. “Until now, the trend has been to tell children: be careful not to become victims online. It is harder to tell them: be careful not to become perpetrators too!“
According to experts, one reason explaining the increased number of minor offenders has to do with the spread of smartphone use from an early age. Pupils often post and share nude photographs via WhatsApp or take selfies displaying their genitals. As Rüdiger observes, to date criminal law does not have clear answers as to what content may circulate on social media. “Twenty years ago, for example, it would not have been accepted that someone unintentionally possesses child pornography material,” the German criminologist states.
Today matters are more complex and, as he points out, if for instance a minor sends a video or photograph of pornographic content to a chat among classmates, all those participating in it may automatically become accomplices. However, “classic” categories of perpetrators of course continue to exist, such as a 17-year-old who threatened an 11-year-old girl with the publication of nude photographs of her. Last year, the German Federal Police, after investigations into the computers of 21 suspects in the online distribution of child pornography material, also identified among them a 14-year-old.
The responsibility of parents
The police are calling on parents to take the issue very seriously and to point out to their children that they cannot share, even with friends, nude photographs or photographs of their genitals via the internet.
“The protection of personal data also includes the protection of personal files. Thus, if a file is stored somewhere, it cannot be made available on the internet either,” Rüdiger states. As the only solution to avoid such phenomena, the German expert considers the development of skills for the proper handling of social media. There are serious gaps there. That is why the responsibility of parents, the school and politics is great.
Part of the article was published on Lifo.gr
- See also article Minor Defendants
- See also article Child Pornography
- See also article Reclassification of Child Pornography from Felony to Misdemeanor
- See also article Legal Practice and Child Pornography
- See also article Profile of a Child Pornography Distributor
- See also article Defamation via Facebook
- See also article Online Fraud
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS ABOUT MINOR DISTRIBUTORS OF CHILD PORNOGRAPHY
1. What sentence does a minor who has distributed such material face?
Where the defendant is a minor, the special regime of the Penal Code (PK) for minors applies (Articles 121 et seq. of the Penal Code). Imprisonment is rarely imposed; as a rule, reformative or therapeutic measures are imposed, such as a reprimand, entrustment of responsible care to the parents, supervision by a juvenile probation officer, the provision of community service or attendance at special counselling and therapeutic programmes. Penal correction by confinement in a special juvenile detention facility is ordered only in serious cases and for minors over 15 years of age. In addition, for incidents between peers, standalone pleas may be raised which lead to the act being characterised as a misdemeanor or to acquittal.
2. Can the minor be taken into custody or imprisoned?
For minors, deprivation of liberty constitutes a measure of last resort. Pre-trial detention is permitted only in exceptional cases and for minors over 15 years of age, provided that the act constitutes a felony with a prescribed penalty exceeding ten years. In most cases of distribution via chat or social media, restrictive measures are imposed, such as a prohibition on the use of specific media, reporting to a police station or entrustment of care to the parents. Defence counsel is mobilised from the very first moment in order to prevent any measure that would stigmatise the minor.
3. What do we do when the police seize the child’s mobile phone?
From the moment of seizure, the minor has the right to be represented by a lawyer and the right to remain silent. It is advisable not to give explanations without prior communication with counsel, since whatever the child states is recorded and used. The lawyer checks whether the seizure and the examination of the files were carried out under a lawful judicial order, whether the chain of custody of the digital evidence was observed and whether confidentiality was breached. Any irregularities may lead to the exclusion of evidence. At the same time, copies of the case file are requested and the defence statement is prepared.
4. Is there a possibility of acquittal or discharge of the minor?
Yes, and the chances are indeed significant in many cases. Where the minor received the material involuntarily in a group chat without seeking it, where they were unaware of its illegal character, or where the case concerns an exchange between adolescent peers concerning themselves, a defence may be advanced leading to acquittal or to the act being characterised as not punishable. Our firm has obtained an acquittal from a Juvenile Court in a similar case. The age, maturity, circumstances and the psychosocial report of the Juvenile Probation Service play an important role.
5. How long does the procedure before the Juvenile Court last?
The pre-trial stage (preliminary investigation, taking of the defence statement, drafting of the report by the juvenile probation officer) is usually completed within six to eighteen months, depending on the workload of the prosecutor’s office and the need for digital analysis of the seized devices. The hearing before the Juvenile Court is, as a rule, scheduled within the following period. Any appeal is heard by the competent Juvenile Court of Appeals within one to two years. The overall course is influenced by the defence strategy and by the wish to avoid publicity.
6. What is the role of the lawyer in cases involving minors?
Counsel takes over the defence from the moment of seizure or summons to give a defence statement and devises a strategy adapted to the age and circumstances of the child. Counsel contests the substantive establishment of intent, examines the lawfulness of the digital evidence, cooperates with psychologists and juvenile probation officers and raises standalone pleas and mitigating circumstances. The Law Firm ZIAMPARAS D. & ASSOCIATES has long-standing experience in cybercrime and child pornography cases, with significant acquittals, safeguarding both the legal position and the future of the minor.