On behalf of The Law Office of Gustavo E. Frances, P.A.
Protecting Fort Lauderdale’s children is a job taken seriously by local police. However, officials at the state and federal levels also get involved in keeping area children safe — particularly from child sex abuse. Therefore, child pornography charges and other sex crimes against children are subject to extensive investigations and aggressive prosecution here in Florida.
Over the last several decades, with the rise of the internet, there has been a rise in the amount of effort law enforcement officials have put into catching people who sexually abuse children and those who make or distribute child pornography. Some say that the internet and other technology — such as smartphones — have made it easier for people to store and make child pornography. Therefore, police say a greater effort is needed to try and catch these people.
Local police are getting help with this effort from a couple of sources. According to federal sources, the number of tips coming from members of the community has increased by almost 1,000 percent over the last decade. Last year, these officials received over 400,000 tips about people who are abusing children. Furthermore, in 2006 a federal task force called Project Safe Childhood was launched by the Department of Justice. Project Safe Childhood has been responsible for working with local and state agencies to arrest and prosecute sex offenders. One Florida district holds the record for the highest number of prosecutions in the country under this program.
With all these extensive efforts in Florida, citizens need to take precautions to protect their constitutional rights if they are accused of sex crimes. Particularly if a child is involved, those facing allegations of sexual abuse should have an aggressive criminal defense to challenge the police and prosecutors.
When you need a criminal defense lawyer in Fort Lauderdale, you can contact us by calling 954-533-2756 for a free consultation.
Orlando Sentinel, “Extreme child predators thrive online despite aggressive crackdowns,” Amy Pavuk, Oct. 25, 2013
