New York pornography law: New York Law Code has six criminal offenses involving child pornography listed: The last four concentrate on individuals who support and produce child pornography. The other two make having child pornography a crime. Although the issue of people having child pornography has been around for a very long time. So the introduction and dissemination of digital technologies made it significantly worse. To tackle the issue, law enforcement has come up with innovative and high-tech ways to catch people who are in the area.
Thus, you should contact an expert New York Possession of Child Pornography Lawyer as soon as possible if you are guilty of having child pornography.
What exactly is the child pornography law?
Federal law binds a kid engaging in sexually explicit behavior to any “visual portrayal” of child pornography. However, Not all kid nude images or films are pornography. Images of sexual activity as well as vulgar or lascivious displays of the genitalia are considered “sexually explicit” and must be depicted. In a close case, determining whether a picture is “sexually explicit” may fall to either the judge or the jury. In reality, however, the majority of the content that is prosecuted is undeniably sexual.
New York pornography law: Having a Child Perform a Sexual Act in New York
Possession of or access to photos of sexual conduct by anyone under the age of 16 constitutes possessing a sexual performance by a child, a felony under Criminal Law Section 263.16. Possessing a sexual performance “by a child” is not a crime if the person in the picture is at least 16 years old. Yet, a 16-year-old image still violates federal law and, relying on the claims, may result in charges of either disseminating indecent material to minors or encouraging sexual performance by a child.
A sexual performance, as defined above, is an image that depicts sexual activity, including “real or simulated sexual intercourse, oral sexual conduct, anal sexual conduct, sexual bestiality, masturbation, sadomasochistic abuse, or indecent exhibition of the genitalia.” The legal definition of the word “possessing” is broad. Possessing a sexual performance means, in New York, that the individual possesses it knowingly in their possession, under their control, or has known access to it to view it.
First-time felonies have minimum prison terms of 1 to 3 years and maximum sentences of 1 1/3 to 4 years. Yet, a lesser sentence or none at all are options for punishment. If found guilty of having a child’s sexual performance in their possession, a person must register as a sex offender.
New York Pornography Law: Encouraging a Child’s Sexual Performance
A person is guilty of producing, directing, or promoting any act that features sexual conduct by a boy or girl who is under the age of 17 as a violation of Criminal Code Section 263.15. Lets explain the three terms to properly comprehend the aspects of the crime:
- The term “promotes” is used generically to refer to actions such as lending, delivering, transferring, publishing, distributing, and disseminating, as well as an offer to carry out any of the previous actions.
- Any video or image is a “performance.”
- “Sexual Behavior,” includes all forms of sex, including masturbation and the simple display of genitalia.
A Sexual Performance’s Promotion “By a Child” is a crime with a sexual motivation. If the accused fits the prerequisites, teen sexting diversion may be an option. For a first offense, the prison term would be between 2 and 7 years, with an additional 3 to 10 years of post-release monitoring. A conviction necessitates SORA registration as a sexual offender. If a judge renders certain positive findings, there are two further sentence options:
- One year in jail; or ten years on parole
New York Pornography Law: Adolescent Sexting and Other Sexual Offenses in New York
If a videotape of the sexual act(s) between the guilty person and the juvenile is used as the basis for the allegation of distributing indecent information to minors or encouraging sexual performance by a child, the act(s) could result in further counts. New York has a 17-year-old legal minimum for consent to sexual activity.
This indicates that in New York, a person under the age of 17 is not capable of giving consent to sex. Statutory rape is sexual activity with a person under the age of 17. After charges of teen sexting, there have been several sexual crimes in New York namely: criminal sexual activity, rape, and sexual abuse
Depending on the defendant’s and victim’s ages, some of these offenses have a minimum or maximum age requirement for the complaining witness.
New York Pornography Law: Youthful Criminal Status and Teenage Sexting
According to the preceding statement, even a minor who uses technological means such as texting or social media direct messages to send may face legal ramifications. To put it another way, the fact that both the sender and the recipient of a sexually explicit electronic message were under the age of 17 is not an acceptable excuse for committing a crime like teen sexting.
Teenagers can qualify for adjudication as youthful offenders in addition to New York’s Juvenile Sexting Diversion if they are between the ages of 14 and 19.
Adjudications of youthful offenders provide the benefit of relieving a youngster of the burden of a criminal record. In general, to qualify as a youthful offender, the young person must:
- Is at least 14 years old and younger than 19 when the actual offense is committed;
- Have never been handled as a youthful offender before, and
- Have never been found guilty of a felony.
Adjudication as a youthful offender provides numerous benefits over prosecution as an adult. A young criminal may still get a term of up to 4 years in prison, but these penalties are uncommon. Moreover, there is no criminal conviction or record created by your judgment as a youth.
Some FAQs about New York Pornography Law.
The following are some FAQs concerning New York Pornography Law:
What Sanctions Apply to Child Pornography?
Child pornography charges carry shockingly harsh penalties; even simple possession usually results in prison time in federal court. Simple possessors may receive probation in New York City’s state courts, though jail is more common. Maximum penalties can include life in prison. When convicted of possessing child pornography in New York, one almost always becomes a lifelong sex offender.
What exactly is a digital forensic investigation?
However, in child pornography trials the court always makes use of technological evidence. A computer hard disk, a mobile phone, or any other data storage device may contain illegal child pornography. However, child pornography is easily accessible on these devices. But some users choose to erase, encrypt, or hide the content. The forensic investigation enters the picture here.
Do Individuals Who Possess Child Pornography Need to Register as Sexual Offenders?
Yes. All child pornography convictions under New York State and federal law require sex offender registration. Even if your conviction was on the federal level or came from another state.
