Bill Text: CA AB321 | 2011-2012 | Regular Session | Introduced

NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft

---

Bill Title: Juvenile offenders: obscene material.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2012-02-01 - Died pursuant to Art. IV, Sec. 10(c) of the Constitution. From committee: Filed with the Chief Clerk pursuant to Joint Rule 56. [AB321 Detail]

Download: California-2011-AB321-Introduced.html

---

BILL NUMBER: AB 321	INTRODUCED
	BILL TEXT


INTRODUCED BY   Assembly Member Roger Hernández

                        FEBRUARY 9, 2011

   An act to add Section 729.14 to the Welfare and Institutions Code,
relating to juveniles.


	LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


   AB 321, as introduced, Roger Hernández. Juvenile offenders:
obscene material.
   Existing law provides that any person under 18 years of age who
commits a crime is within the jurisdiction of the juvenile court,
except as specified. Existing law makes it a felony to knowingly
possess or control any matter that contains or incorporates the use
of a person under 18 years of age personally engaging in or
simulating sexual conduct, as specified.
   This bill would authorize the court, if the sexually explicit
matter was in the possession of a minor, to order the minor to pay a
fine not to exceed $1,000, and to undergo counseling, with the cost
of counseling to be borne by the minor's parents, as specified. The
bill would also make legislative findings and declarations regarding
the problems associated with sexting, which is defined as the sending
or receiving of sexually explicit pictures or video images via
cellular phone or similar electronic device.
   Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: no.
State-mandated local program: no.


THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

  SECTION 1.  The Legislature finds and declares all of the
following:
   (a) According to the CTIA Wireless Association, as of 2009, there
are 285.6 million wireless subscribers in the United States. On
average, each subscriber sends 152.7 text messages on a monthly
basis.
   (b) Sexting, which is defined as the sending or receiving of
sexually explicit pictures or video images via cellular phone or
similar electronic device, is a growing problem among minors.
According to a 2008 survey conducted by the National Campaign to
Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy, 20 percent of teens between 13
and 19 years of age have sent or posted nude or semi-nude pictures or
videos of themselves.
   (c) While teens generally send these images to an intended
recipient, more often than not, these images are shared with others.
Thirty-eight percent of teens report that they have received sexts
that were meant for someone else but were shared with them.
   (d) The potential for these images to reach such a wide and
unknown audience can cause the person ridicule and greatly compromise
his or her future educational and career opportunities.
   (e) United States Senator Robert Menendez of New Jersey introduced
the SAFE Internet Act (S. 1047), which would allocate $175 million
to funding the program and authorize the Director of the Bureau of
Justice Assistance to make grants available to schools, state
agencies, and nonprofit organizations to assist in providing
education programs for children about the dangers of sexting.
   (f) In an incident of cyberbullying, photos of a sexual encounter
can be recorded on a cell phone camera and posted on the Internet
within an hour.
   (g) According to the Pew Research Center, sexting has become a
form of "relationship currency" that causes girls, in particular, to
feel pressure to send sexually explicit images.
   (h) Sexting extends beyond being a source of embarrassment, but
can also prevent those pictured in the images from obtaining certain
types of employment and even scholarships.
   (i) Developments in technology and communication has allowed for
widespread dissemination of these damaging images within moments. The
nature of today's technology is such that these images may never be
recovered or removed from the Internet.
  SEC. 2.  Section 729.14 is added to the Welfare and Institutions
Code, to read:
   729.14.  If a minor is found to be a person described in Section
602 by reason of the commission of an offense described in Section
311.11 of the Penal Code, the court shall, in addition to any other
fine, sentence, or as a condition of probation, order the minor to
pay a fine not exceeding one thousand dollars ($1,000), and attend
counseling at the expense of the minor's parents. The court shall
take into consideration the ability of the minor's parents consistent
with Section 730.7 to pay; however, no minor shall be relieved of
attending counseling because of the minor's parents' inability to pay
for the counseling imposed by this section.