Teen Sexting: Colorado Bill Moves Forward

Two years after Canon City was roiled by a teen sexting scandal that saw dozens of students being suspended and the football team forfeiting its last game of the season, the Colorado legislature is close to passing a bill addressing many of the concerns that arose from the incident.

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The state house unanimously passed a bill 65-0 creating the crime of juvenile sexting. It states it is illegal to distribute sexually explicit images of a juvenile without the juvenile's consent.

If the person sharing the image is under 18, the crime is a misdemeanor.

Under the current law, it is felony child pornography to posses an image of a nude minor.

State legislators felt the law needed to be changed to address the fact that sexting among teens has become common place. There was a concern that two teens in a relationship who sexted could end up having to register as a sex offender.

While the bill does not require schools to teach anything about sexting, it does require that they have access to curriculum that they could use.

The bill now goes to the senate.

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