The Cumberland County courthouse in Fayetteville, North Carolina, where two teens were prosecuted for sharing explicit photos of one another. Photo by Gerry Dincher via Flickr
Steve Russell, a member of the Cherokee Nation, thinks American prosecutors should work on the other side of the justice system every now and then, citing the case of two North Carolina teens who pleaded guilty for trading explicit pictures of each other:
This September was a hard month for prosecutors in the news. The Guardian reported on a couple of teenagers in North Carolina—reported by name but I see no reason to repeat the names and much reason not to—who drew felony prosecutions for possessing naked pictures on their smart phones…of themselves. They were both 16. He actually had one photo of her and the rest were his own. She had nothing but her own photos and still faced the same charges, sexual exploitation of a minor. They were charged with sexually exploiting themselves. Both kids copped plea deals for misdemeanor probation. Failure to cop a plea would risk felony prison time and a lifetime on a sex offender registry because they were apparently involved in “sexting.” The research I’ve read shows about 30 percent of teenagers engage in sexting at least once. Even more absurd, those two kids actually having sex would have been perfectly legal, because they were both over the North Carolina age of consent—but some rocket scientist decided they needed to get charged with felonies for taking naked selfies? Does North Carolina IQ test prosecutors?Get the Story:
Steve Russell: Bat-Shit Crazy or Just Good Lawyering in North Carolina? (Indian Country Today 11/7)
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