What is Child Abuse?
When trying to define child abuse, we find that it is quite difficult since it has become such a controversial topic over the years, as we have focused more of our attention on the well-being of children. This term may be problematic to define because each person has their own opinion on what constitutes abuse. In my opinion, child abuse can be defined as any physical/emotional form of violence that is more severe than say a firm little spank or a reprimand; basically, anything causing harm and/or injuries to a child. Hitting children with any objects that may injure them or repeatedly calling them any sort of demeaning/disrespectful names may be considered physical/emotional abuse.Should Spanking be Considered Child Abuse?
In my personal opinion, I do not consider spanking child abuse only if it is done to reprimand a child and if it is done only when the child’s behavior calls for it. For example, I do not feel a child should not be spanked for every wrongdoing; instead spanking should be reserved as punishment for more severe misbehavior. I do not feel that spanking (at the appropriate times), is child abuse simply because it is a physical form of punishment for the child, but it is not severe enough to the point that it causes them harm.When Should Punishment Become a Public Concern?
I feel that parents should be allowed to discipline their children as they please, just as long as they are not harming or injuring them. This can be applied to both the public and private spheres. Once the child is being harmed and/or injured, I feel that it is only appropriate for an outsider to step in. An acceptable form of public punishment is a firm reprimand, maybe a firm little spank if it is seriously called for. An unacceptable form of public punishment would be slapping your child across the face and yelling at them for everyone to hear causing commotion. Anything that causes commotion coming from the parents’ end should be unacceptable.Massachusetts Sexual Victimization of Children Laws
Child Pornography:
According
to Part IV >> Title I >> Chapter 272 >> Section 29B, under the
general laws of Massachusetts whoever, with lascivious intent, knowingly (meaning
they know exactly what they are dispersing)
disseminates child pornography (pornography of someone under the age of 18),
will receive “not less than ten nor more than
twenty years or by a fine of not less than ten thousand nor more than fifty
thousand dollars or three times the monetary value of any economic gain derived
from said dissemination, whichever is greater, or by both such fine and
imprisonment” (Massachusetts, 2013).
According
to
Part IV >> Title I >> Chapter 272 >> Section 29C, under the
general laws of Massachusetts whoever knowingly purchases or possesses visual
material of a child depicted in sexual conduct, will receive “not more than five years or in a jail or house of
correction for not more than two and one-half years or by a fine of not less
than $1,000 nor more than $10,000, or by both such fine and imprisonment for
the first offense, not less than five years in a state prison or by a fine of
not less than $5,000 nor more than $20,000, or by both such fine and
imprisonment for the second offense, not less than 10 years in a state prison
or by a fine of not less than $10,000 nor more than $30,000, or by both such
fine and imprisonment for the third and subsequent offenses” (Massachusetts,
2013). However the section after states that none of the above provisions apply
to a licensed physician, attorney, licensed psychologist, law enforcement
officer or officer of the court who is in possesses the materials within the
lawful performance of his official duty nor does it apply to an employee of a
bona fide enterprise (Massachusetts, 2013).
Violations of child pornography laws in Massachusetts are considered a felony (Capeless, 2013).
Sexting:
According
to Berkshire district attorney David F. Capeless, “sexting” may violate the Commonwealth
laws that were created for the protection of children. He states that child
pornography laws in Massachusetts are considered felonies and that no “lesser”
charges apply to this conduct. After further research, although I found that no
specific laws explicitly punish sexting itself, Capeless states that “incidents of ‘sexting’ in Berkshire County will be
taken very seriously, with law enforcement intervention if necessary” (Capeless,
2013).
What is Sexting?
In the same ways that controversial terms may be problematic in
defining, so is sexting. This is mainly due to the fact that the term can be
used to describe a wide range of activities including “producing and sending images
of oneself, receiving images directly from the producer, or forwarding received
images to other people” (Lounsbury, 1). In general, sexting can be defined as “the
creation and transmission of sexual images by minors” (Lounsbury, 1). Although
the concerns on this issue have focused primarily on sexting via cell phones,
the term may also be applied to the sending of such images through any digital
media (i.e. social networking sites and instant messages) (Lounsbury,1 ).
Should Sexting be Punished?
In many ways I do not feel that sexting should be punished
simply because you should not be punished for choosing to show someone else
something personal or for receiving a message. Many times the minors committing
these offenses do not even know the consequences that sexting may cause; like
their messages being forwarded to unwanted recipients. Consequently, this is
where we run into problems. Although I do not feel that sending images of ones’
self or receiving pictures should be punished, I do feel that forwarding images
of others should be punished moderately; in other words with high fines but not
jail time. Whereas sending images of yourself is a personal choice and
receiving images is not much of a choice since you have no control over what is
sent or from whom, forwarding messages of others is a choice made to share someone
else’s personal information without their consent. Such actions may be problematic
if the intended message gets to the hands of unintended recipients. If it is
not your personal image to share, you should not be allowed to share it.
Child Victimization Case in Massachusetts
According to Erik Ortiz, in 2009 a Massachusetts man pleaded
guilty to raping and impregnating a 14-year old girl. The offender, then 20, had
met the victim through the church they attended. Then in 2011, after pleading guilty to four
counts of statutory rape of a child, the offender (not identified), was sentenced
to 16 years in probation. Due to the fact that the victim decided to keep her
baby, the court came to an arrangement with the offender to lessen the possible
sentence. “The probation was part
of an arrangement in which he had to acknowledge he’s the baby’s father and
follow probate and family court rules, according to the station” (Ortiz, 2012).
Although this probation required that he pay child support, it also allowed him
the right to seek visitation of the child, which he later would. This is where
issues arose.
After being raped, it
is likely that the victim would not want to maintain contact with her offender.
“She got raped at 14,” the victim’s mother said to Fox 25. “She decided to keep
her baby. And now she has to hand her baby over for a visit with her rapist?” (Ortiz, 2012). Many individuals
would share these same strong feelings. This included Wendy Murphy, an attorney
for the victim who would file a motion August 1, asking that he judge revise
the sentencing conditions. She suggested that instead of asking the offender to
pay child support, he should be asked to pay “restitution”, “which would
prevent him from gaining access to the child through family court” (Ortiz,
2012). In preventing this access it would give the victim’s family exactly what
they desired; to have “nothing to do with this guy”. After all, “What legal system requires a toddler to have a relationship
with the man who raped her mother?” (Ortiz, 2012).
Media Portrayal
Child Abuse - Nanny Caught on Tape
This video is a story about a mother who hired a nanny to take care of her twin babies while she went back to work. As a safety precaution, she had cameras installed in the house just in case; never actually suspecting anything wrong from what seemed a well-suited nanny. What she saw on the tapes .. well that's a whole different story.
References
Capeless, David F. (2013). District Attorney Holds Press
Conference on Problem of “Sexting” in Berkshire County. Retrieved from http://www.mass.gov/berkshireda/news-and-updates/district-attorney-holds-press-conference-on.html
Lounsbury, Kaitlin.
Kimberly J. Mitchell, David Finkelhor. (2011). The True Prevalence of “Sexting”.
Retrieved from https://www.unh.edu/ccrc/pdf/Sexting%20Fact%20Sheet%204_29_11.pdf
Massachusetts Laws. (2013). Dissemination or possession of
obscene matter; punishment; defense: Sections 29B and 29C. Retrieved from http://www.malegislature.gov/Laws/GeneralLaws/PartIV/TitleI/Chapter272/Section29
Ortiz, Erik. (2012). Girl’s RAPIST seeks paternal visitation
rights to their child. Retrieved from http://www.nydailynews.com/news/national/girl-rapist-seeks-paternal-visitation-rights-child-article-1.1169145
