Speaker
Description
Image-based sexual abuse (IBSA) of youth has become a growing concern for parents, schools, communities, and law enforcement. A large proportion of IBSA involves exploitation by acquaintances, peers, and romantic partners. Law enforcement professionals often struggle with how to best respond to peer-perpetrated IBSA that is reported to them. Arrest is often not a viable or optimal response, and the dynamics of the cases can be complex. The current paper presents data from the 4th National Juvenile Online Victimization (N-JOV4), a national survey of law enforcement agencies across the U.S. Specifically, data was analyzed from 432 cases involving youth produced sexual images that came to the attention of police, but did not result in arrest. Nineteen percent of cases involved current or past romantic partners or individuals with romantic/sexual interest in the minor, while 81% of cases involved other acquaintances (primarily friends or school peers). Aggravated components of the cases included blackmail (7%), coercion (5%), and threats (7%), and in 20% of cases, the sexual images were known to have been forwarded to other individuals. In only 22% of cases (N=84), did law enforcement note or document that the youth were referred for counseling or support. The paper provides additional details on these cases and explores reasons why arrests were not made.
Keywords
image-based abuse; peer abuse; CSAM; law enforcement; sexting
| Please indicate what type of scientific contribution it is | Quantitative method study |
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| Please also indicate what kind of contribution it is: | Scientific |
