Prosecutors Lead Effort Against Online = Predators

Prosecutors = Lead Effort=20 Against Online Predators

By Jerry Markon
Washington Post Staff = Writer
Thursday,=20 June 22, 2006; PW01

When the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children started = its=20 CyberTipline in 1998, it received about 4,500 reports that year of = children had=20 been victimized by online sexual predators.

Today, it gets about 1,500 reports a week; it received more than = 71,000 last=20 year. They include complaints about child pornography and adults using = the=20 Internet to entice children for sex. At least 90 percent of the reports = involve=20 online activity.

"This is a very big problem," said Michelle Collins, director of the=20 Exploited Child Unit at the Alexandria-based center. "No one wants to be = alarmist. But in the area of child porn and child sex abuse, if the = public were=20 to truly understand the volume of what we're dealing with, it would be = quite a=20 shock."

The federal government has taken notice. In an effort to crack down = on the=20 growing sexual exploitation of children through the Internet, the = Justice=20 Department recently launched Project Safe Childhood. The national = initiative=20 aims to coordinate law enforcement efforts and bring more cases in = federal=20 courts, where sentencing provisions are likely to land abusers in jail = for=20 longer terms than in the state court systems.

In Alexandria, the U.S. attorney's office is taking the lead in = putting=20 Project Safe Childhood into action. Last week, the office coordinated a=20 conference in Richmond at which more than 200 law enforcement officials = from=20 throughout Virginia explored ways to better investigate and prosecute = online=20 sexual exploitation cases. It was the first of more than 90 similar = conferences=20 that will be held by U.S. attorneys' offices nationwide.

"The idea of Project Safe Childhood is for everyone to cooperate and = focus=20 their efforts so we're not running off in different directions," said = Robert=20 Wiechering, an assistant U.S. attorney in Alexandria. "I won't say it's = been=20 haphazard before, but it's really been a sheriff here or a sheriff = there. If we=20 pool all our resources and focus on the most dangerous individuals, we = will have=20 a real impact on making the Internet safer and children safer."

The dimensions of the problem are staggering, according to federal = statistics=20 and law enforcement officials. Since an FBI program called Innocent = Images=20 National Initiative began targeting child pornography and child sexual=20 enticement in 1995, arrests have increased by more than 2,000 percent, = jumping=20 from 68 in 1996 to 1,649 in 2005.

Justice Department prosecutions of child pornography and child abuse = have=20 also skyrocketed in the past decade, going from 344 cases in 1995 to = 1,576 last=20 year. In Northern Virginia, cases are on the rise as well, though = federal=20 officials could not provide specific numbers.

Law enforcement officials and child advocates blame the technology = and=20 anonymity of the Internet.

"What the Internet has done is, it has become the greatest connector = of all=20 time," Collins said. "Individuals who previously would not necessarily = have=20 shared their proclivity or sexual interest in kids with anyone around = them,=20 because of what people would say, these people can now go into their = basement,=20 have a soda, open a bag of chips and connect with 1,000 other people who = feel=20 the same way."

Before the Internet era, Collins said, people who wanted to see = graphic=20 images of children "would have to go into an adult bookstore, wink-wink = at the=20 person behind the counter and hope he wouldn't call the cops, or take = the chance=20 of ordering something through the mail. Now people can just get online = and hide=20 things on their computer. It's really introduced a new type of = offender."

The ease of Internet use has changed the nature of child pornography, = investigators say. Victims are getting younger, and images online are = stunningly=20 graphic.

"It's getting much more egregious," said Gerald Smagala, an assistant = U.S.=20 attorney in Alexandria. "We're talking kids as young as 8 months old, = lit=20 candles, genital contact, oral this and oral that. There is stuff out = there that=20 would bring tears to a lot of people's eyes."

Project Safe Childhood, launched by Attorney General Alberto R. = Gonzales last=20 month, aims to combat that by requiring every U.S. attorney's office to = give=20 greater focus to online sexual exploitation cases. Prosecutors will work = with=20 the FBI and other federal agencies that investigate child sex abuse = cases, such=20 as U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and the Postal Inspection = Service,=20 and better coordinate efforts with local officials.

Each U.S. attorney's office is expected to set up a working group to=20 investigate and prosecute cases and decide whether to bring them in = federal or=20 state court.

In Northern Virginia, the group is expected to include federal = prosecutors,=20 commonwealth's attorneys and local law enforcement officials from = Alexandria,=20 Arlington and other jurisdictions.

Fairfax County Assistant Commonwealth's Attorney Marc J. Birnbaum, = who=20 attended the Richmond conference, said he learned that online child = abusers=20 often fit a different profile than other criminals.

"It's someone who in many respects can blend into the community and = not=20 outwardly appear as dangerous," he said. "These people appear as = neighbors. They=20 are often in positions of trust: coaches, teachers."

As for what parents can do to protect their children, Birnbaum's = advice was=20 simple: "It is imperative that parents monitor what their children are = doing on=20 the Internet. These predators have a real dedication to hunting out and = finding=20 children. They don't stop at any sort of boundary.''

=C2=A9 2006 The=20 Washington Post Company