Hello Everyone,
Evelyn here,
Today Attorney General Bill McCollum was presents as Governor Crist signed SB 1004, the CyberCrimes Against Children Act of 2007 into law.
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OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL
BILL MCCOLLUM
ATTORNEY GENERAL OF FLORIDA
PRESS RELEASE
JUNE 20, 2007
CYBERCRIME BILL SIGNED, FLORIDA TAKES PLACE
AS NATIONAL LEADER
~ McCollum Shares Florida’s Success with Attorneys General at National Meeting ~
TALLAHASSEE, FL - Attorney General Bill McCollum today thanked Governor Charlie Crist for signing into law the CyberCrimes Against Children Act of 2007 (SB 1004), a measure that substantially toughens penalties for those who use the internet to prey on children. As a result, Florida is one of the national leaders with the some of the toughest laws against child pornography and internet solicitation of children. Additionally, Florida is now the only state that specifically targets “grooming,” which occurs when the internet predator lies about his age in order to break down his victims’ inhibitions.
“Our CyberCrime Unit now has the full support of some of the toughest laws in the nation as they work to keep our children safe from internet predators,” said Attorney General McCollum. “Not only has Florida distinguished itself with efforts to protect its youngest citizens, but our state’s leadership has clearly demonstrated their commitment to enabling our investigators and attorneys to continue their fight against cybercrime.”
Over the next 18 months, the CyberCrime Unit plans to expand throughout the state, opening new offices in six additional cities. The new enhanced penalties for internet predators also include a new, separate penalty against those who communicate with a child online and then travel to meet that child for the specific purpose of further sexually abusing him or her. The designation of the new crime has been hailed by law enforcement and prosecutors within the state as the tools necessary to launch more investigations and build stronger cases against the people who are targeting Florida’s children on the internet.
“Attorney General McCollum’s legislation will shine the light on all those sexual perverts hiding in the dark of cyberspace and bring them out in the open where law enforcement and prosecutors across the state will slam the prison doors shut on them,” said State Attorney Norman Wolfinger for the 18th Judicial Circuit. State Attorney Bernie McCabe for the 6th Judicial Circuit agreed, stating that the new law will be helpful to state prosecutors as they work to protect Florida’s children.
Speaking today at the annual summer meeting of the National Association of Attorneys General, Attorney General McCollum remarked on the growing national threat to the 40 state Attorneys General in attendance, stressing the importance of working on a national level to combat internet crimes against children and emphasizing Florida’s successes in the legal fight against cybercrimes.
Another important aspect of the new laws includes a new reporting requirement for registered sex offenders in the state of Florida. All sex offenders and sexual predators must now submit their email addresses and internet screen names to the Florida Department of Law Enforcement to be included on the sex offender registry. This information will then be made available to popular social networking sites such as MySpace and Facebook. MySpace has already been in contact with the Attorney General’s Office, providing the CyberCrime Unit with the names of all Florida registered sex offenders who had MySpace accounts. The company has since deleted all of the offenders’ accounts.
More information about Attorney General McCollum’s CyberCrime Unit is available online at: http://www.safeflorida.net.
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Evelyn out.
