Child Pornography

Penal Code 311 PC makes it a crime to knowingly send, transport, duplicate, print, advertise, or possess child pornography or to hire or persuade minors to participate in making pornographic imagery. For instance, a person can be charged with child pornography if they share videos of naked teens on the internet or hire a 16-year-old minor to pose for pornographic photos. Note that in the context of the law, “child pornography” is defined as any matter or material depicting sexual conduct by a person under the age of 18. In some cases, the court may say that in order to be charged the pornographic material must be “obscene”:

• shows or describes sexual conduct in an offensive way;
• lacks serious literary, artistic, political, or scientific value; and
• appeals to an interest in nudity, sex, excretion.

Related crimes include lewd acts with a child, statutory rape, and revenge porn (distributing private sexual images of someone with the intent to cause them emotional distress).