House panel approves crackdown on child pornography

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The House Judiciary Committee approved by voice vote a bill aimed at cracking down on child pornography and exploitation online.

The bill increases the maximum penalties for child pornography offenses from 10 to 20 years and strengthens protections for child witnesses and victims during the trial process. Judiciary Committee Chairman Lamar Smith (R-TX), the lead co-sponsor of the bill, praised the outcome of the vote. “Today Internet child pornography may be the fastest growing crime in America, increasing an average of 150 percent per year,” Chairman Smith said. “We must ensure that investigators have every available resource to track down predators and protect the weakest among us.”


House panel approves crackdown on child pornography