logo
Kids are getting propositioned in virtual reality, and right now it's legal

Kids are getting propositioned in virtual reality, and right now it's legal

Yahoo07-02-2025

In Utah, it is a felony for an adult to reach out to a minor via text to meet up for sexual relations. But if the adult propositions a minor in virtual reality, that isn't illegal.
'Many mistakenly believe that because something happens in the digital space, it isn't real or harmful, but for a child, these experiences are psychologically damaging,' Rep. Verona Mauga, D-Salt Lake County, said Thursday during the House Law Enforcement and Criminal Justice Committee meeting.
So far in this year's legislative session, bills regarding crimes against children appear to be highly unifying issues across party lines. Mauga's bill, HB358, was no exception.
Passed with favorable recommendation by the committee, HB358 creates the following criminal offenses:
Using virtual reality to participate in sexual activity with a child.
Requesting sexually explicit conduct from an individual who is in custody.
Mauga said the bill 'targets offenders hiding behind avatars' and 'makes it clear that virtual reality is not a loophole for predators, and it ensures real consequences for virtual crimes if an adult is knowingly using VR technology to engage in sexual activities with a child.'
Because it is not always clear what age a person is when participating in VR, Mauga clarified that the bill applies to people who 'knowingly' engage in sexual acts with a minor.
Brett Robinson, senior attorney in the Salt Lake County District Attorney's Office, who spoke on the bill, shared a case where he had to seek a warrant for a Snapchat account.
In this case, Robinson said a mother had found her 11-year-old daughter who had fallen asleep with her VR headset on. When she went to lift the headset off her daughter, she found messages sent to her daughter via Snapchat by an adult.
The messages were along the lines of wanting the little girl to return to VR so they could participate in sexual relations again. Robinson said it was a 'friend of a friend' whom the girl had never met in person.
He also spoke on the second criminal offense included in the bill. Robinson said that requesting sexually explicit conduct from an individual who is in custody was included in the bill because of a separate but similar situation where, under a technicality, it wasn't illegal.
'These are two ways where the laws don't protect the ways that people will use technology to harm vulnerable people.'
According to a study that came out last year by Florida Atlantic University, significant numbers of minors have reported experiencing various forms of harassment while in virtual spaces. The study examined 5,005 13 to 17-year-old kids from the United States and found the following statistics:
Nearly 19% encountered sexual harassment.
Around 21% faced undesirable violent or sexual content.
18.1% encountered grooming or predatory conduct.
30% were targeted for characteristics including weight, sexual preference, sexual orientation or political affiliation.
Girls were reportedly targeted more in terms of sexual harassment and grooming/predatory behavior.
'Right here in our state, in Utah and across the country, we are seeing adults engaging in cyber sex with children using virtual reality, and there is no legal mechanism to protect our children,' Mauga said. 'I think it would be prudent of us to do what we can to protect them.'

Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

Port Angeles 18-year-old accused of firing semi-automatic handgun out of moving car
Port Angeles 18-year-old accused of firing semi-automatic handgun out of moving car

Yahoo

time38 minutes ago

  • Yahoo

Port Angeles 18-year-old accused of firing semi-automatic handgun out of moving car

Deputies have arrested an 18-year-old in Port Angeles after they say he fired a semi-automatic handgun out the driver's window of a moving car. On June 5 around 8 p.m., Clallam County deputies responded to reports of a shooting on Deer Park Road. Deputies received a four-second Snapchat video showing an individual, later identified as an 18-year-old from Port Angeles, discharging a semi-automatic handgun out the driver's side window of a moving vehicle. Through investigative efforts, deputies were able to pinpoint the exact location where the shot was fired by analyzing landscape features visible in the video, including trees, mountain slopes, and road curvature. A spent 9mm shell casing was recovered approximately 123 feet north of the identified location. Search warrants were subsequently obtained for both the firearm and the suspect's arrest. On June 7, he voluntarily contacted deputies after learning of the investigation. He turned himself in and surrendered the 9mm handgun allegedly used in the incident. He was booked and then released and is facing charges for unlawful aiming or discharge of a firearm, a gross misdemeanor.

Mother of missing Navy sailor in Norfolk speaks out as investigation continues
Mother of missing Navy sailor in Norfolk speaks out as investigation continues

Yahoo

timean hour ago

  • Yahoo

Mother of missing Navy sailor in Norfolk speaks out as investigation continues

NORFOLK, Va. (WAVY) — The investigation into missing Culinary Specialist Seaman Angelina Resendiz out of Naval Station Norfolk is still ongoing. Resendiz was initially reported missing on May 29, and the Naval Criminal Investigative Service (NCIS) states her disappearance from the Virginia naval station poses a credible threat to their health and safety. According to the Navy, Resendiz was last seen in her barracks at Naval Station Norfolk around 10 a.m. RELATED: 'Not like Angie at all:' Search continues for missing sailor from Naval Station Norfolk Nexstar's WAVY spoke with Resendiz's mother, Esmerelda Castle, who says she knew something was wrong when her daughter stopped reaching out to family members — something Resendiz was known to do every day. 'She talks to somebody every day,' Castle said. 'Her and my sister have a 400-day streak on Snapchat, and it all stopped on Thursday. She doesn't miss work.' Castle contacted the Navy and flew all the way to Hampton Roads, Virginia, from Texas to look for Resendiz, whom she describes as kind and compassionate. 'She's a very kind person. She's loving,' Castle said. 'She sees someone down, she's compassionate and encouraging and uplifting, and it's just natural for her. You see her and she's always smiling.' Esmerelda Castle shared the below photos of her daughter with WAVY. Castle said the last person who was seen with her daughter showed up to work on Monday, while Resendiz did not. 'I got here Thursday, and [investigators] still couldn't tell me anything,' Castle said. WAVY reached out to NCIS and received the following statement: 'NCIS urges anyone with information regarding her whereabouts to contact NCIS at 877-579-3648 or using the NCIS Tips app. Tips may be reported anonymously.' Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

2 young men charged for bringing fully loaded weapons to Pontiac high school graduation
2 young men charged for bringing fully loaded weapons to Pontiac high school graduation

Yahoo

time2 hours ago

  • Yahoo

2 young men charged for bringing fully loaded weapons to Pontiac high school graduation

Police charged two young men accused of bringing an AR-style pistol and a Glock semi-automatic handgun — both unregistered and fully loaded with 40-round magazines — to a high school graduation in Pontiac, Oakland County Prosecutor Karen McDonald's office announced on June 9. Jamarion Hardiman, 20, and Deahveon Whaley, 19, are each charged with carrying a firearm with unlawful intent, possession of a firearm in the commission of a felony, and carrying a concealed weapon, McDonald's office said in a news release. More: Authorities find loaded weapons at Pontiac high school's graduation Neither suspect was a graduating student but had ongoing disputes with others in the community, authorities have said. The pair went to the graduation together on June 3 at the United Wholesale Mortgage campus, where they allegedly got into a brawl with others but did not fire any rounds. Oakland County Sheriff Michael Bouchard previously said it's likely deputies "prevented a mass shooting." "Just those two weapons without changing magazines had 80 rounds of potential firepower shooting into a graduation," Bouchard said. "You can only imagine the outcome of that." Police were initially called in on reports of the brawl. Surveillance video shows Hardiman assaulting someone inside the sports complex, and then, sometime after, Hardiman, Whaley, and others involved in the fight leaving the building, according to McDonald's office. The brawl continued in the parking lot, where Hardiman was struck by a car, "apparently without injury," the news release details. Hardiman and Whaley then went to their car to get the guns — for Whaley, a firearm to carry in his waistband, and for Hardiman, a "distinctive backpack" that held the AR-style pistol, prosecutors allege in the news release. Authorities say the pair abandoned the weapons under parked vehicles. When they exited the car, the pair is seen in surveillance footage crouching behind and between cars in the parking lot, McDonald's office said. Deputies were informed at the time of a possible shooting threat made on Snapchat. McDonald's office said on June 9 that those threats have not been verified. Andrea Sahouri covers criminal justice for the Detroit Free Press. Contact her at asahouri@ This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: 2 charged after loaded weapons found at Pontiac high school graduation

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into the world of global news and events? Download our app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store