BILL NUMBER: AB 321	AMENDED
	BILL TEXT

	AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY  MARCH 30, 2011

INTRODUCED BY   Assembly Member Roger Hernández

                        FEBRUARY 9, 2011

   An act to add Section  51207 to the Education Code, and to add
Section  729.14 to the Welfare and Institutions Code, relating
to juveniles.



	LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


   AB 321, as amended, Roger Hernández. Juvenile offenders: obscene
material. 
   Existing law requires the adopted course of study for grades 1 to
6, inclusive, and for grades 7 to 12, inclusive, to offer courses in
specified areas of study.  
   This bill would authorize a school district to provide instruction
regarding the potential risks and consequences of creating and
sharing sexually suggestive or sexually explicit materials through
cellular telephones, social networking Internet Web sites, computer
networks, or other digital media. 
   Existing law provides that any person under 18 years of age who
commits a crime is within the jurisdiction of the juvenile court,
except as specified. Existing law makes it a felony to knowingly
possess or control any matter that contains or incorporates the use
of a person under 18 years of age personally engaging in or
simulating sexual conduct, as specified.
   This bill would  authorize   require 
the court, if the sexually explicit matter was in the possession of a
minor, to order the minor to  pay a fine not to exceed
$1,000,   perform community service  and to undergo
counseling, with the cost of counseling to be borne by the minor's
parents, as specified. The bill would also make legislative findings
and declarations regarding the problems associated with sexting,
which is defined as the sending or receiving of sexually explicit
pictures or video images via cellular phone or similar electronic
device.
   Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: no.
State-mandated local program: no.


THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

  SECTION 1.  The Legislature finds and declares all of the
following:
   (a) According to the CTIA Wireless Association, as of 2009, there
are 285.6 million wireless subscribers in the United States. On
average, each subscriber sends 152.7 text messages on a monthly
basis.
   (b) Sexting, which is defined as the sending or receiving of
sexually explicit pictures or video images via cellular phone or
similar electronic device, is a growing problem among minors.
According to a 2008 survey conducted by the National Campaign to
Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy, 20 percent of teens between 13
and 19 years of age have sent or posted nude or semi-nude pictures or
videos of themselves.
   (c) While teens generally send these images to an intended
recipient, more often than not, these images are shared with others.
Thirty-eight percent of teens report that they have received sexts
that were meant for someone else but were shared with them.
   (d) The potential for these images to reach such a wide and
unknown audience can cause the person ridicule and greatly compromise
his or her future educational and career opportunities.
   (e) United States Senator Robert Menendez of New Jersey introduced
the SAFE Internet Act (S. 1047), which would allocate $175 million
to funding the program and authorize the Director of the Bureau of
Justice Assistance to make grants available to schools, state
agencies, and nonprofit organizations to assist in providing
education programs for children about the dangers of sexting.
   (f) In an incident of cyberbullying, photos of a sexual encounter
can be recorded on a cell phone camera and posted on the Internet
within an hour.
   (g) According to the Pew Research Center, sexting has become a
form of "relationship currency" that causes girls, in particular, to
feel pressure to send sexually explicit images.
   (h) Sexting extends beyond being a source of embarrassment, but
can also prevent those pictured in the images from obtaining certain
types of employment and even scholarships.
   (i) Developments in technology and communication has allowed for
widespread dissemination of these damaging images within moments. The
nature of today's technology is such that these images may never be
recovered or removed from the Internet.
   SEC. 2.    Section 51207 is added to the  
Education Code   , to read:  
   51207.  A school district may provide instruction regarding the
potential risks and consequences of creating and sharing sexually
suggestive or sexually explicit materials through cellular
telephones, social networking Internet Web sites, computer networks,
or other digital media. 
   SEC. 2.   SEC. 3.   Section 729.14 is
added to the Welfare and Institutions Code, to read:
   729.14.  If a minor is found to be a person described in Section
602 by reason of the commission of an offense described in Section
311.11 of the Penal Code, the court shall, in addition to any other
fine, sentence, or as a condition of probation, order the minor to
 pay a fine not exceeding one thousand dollars ($1,000), and
attend   perform community service and attend
counseling at the expense of the minor's parents. The court shall
take into consideration the ability of the minor's parents consistent
with Section 730.7 to pay; however, no minor shall be relieved of
attending counseling because of the minor's parents' inability to pay
for the counseling imposed by this section.