Tag: child abuse

Effort to end child marriages in Virginia going to House floor for a vote

Activists and survivors are pushing to completely bar child marriages in Virginia, where exceptions still allow them.

In 2016, the commonwealth became the first state to limit marriage to those who are legal adults, but through a complicated judicial process, some 16- and 17-year-olds could still win permission to marry. In 2018, 23 minors got married. Since 2019, another 27 have wed.

Now a bill is being considered to remove any exception, which 10 other states have already done. The Northern Virginia-based Tahirih Justice Center has been working nationwide to end marriage before age 18.

“One child married is too many,” Tahirih Justice Center Director of Public Policy Casey Swegman said. “Forced or not, it sets people up for devastating short- and long-term consequences, and in fact, delaying marriage to 18 or beyond will set all people up to be better off.”

At a recent hearing in Richmond, a representative for faith-based nonprofit Family Foundation urged lawmakers to stick with current law.

“There are good reasons for people to get married under this very reasonable exception,” Family Foundation legislative counsel Josh Hetzler said.

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Former police officer from Buckland, Mass. pleads guilty to possessing child porn, secretly filming nude girl

A former police officer from a small town in Franklin County pleaded guilty to possessing child pornography and posing and videotaping a child sexually without her knowledge, the District Attorney announced Tuesday.

Jacob Wrisley, 42, was a part-time police officer in Bernardston and Buckland, where he lives. He was sentenced to 4 to 5 years in state prison and a 5-year probation period after his release, Northwestern District Attorney David Sullivan announced.

Wrisley was found with ten thousands of images and videos of child pornography, and some of the victims were identified. According to the DA, Wrisley was a sworn officer when he victimized a young girl who was 8 to 10 years old, and investigators also found images he took of clothed children playing in public places in Franklin County.

Investigators could not identify the “vast majority” of the children in the images found, but the assistant district attorney said his crimes were not “victimless.” 

The investigators also found organized folders on his devices “labeled with graphic, degrading names and containing images of exploited children.”

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Virginia Senators Unanimously Approve Bill To Prevent Marijuana From Being Used As Evidence Of Child Abuse

A Virginia Senate committee voted unanimously in favor of advancing a bill on Wednesday that would prevent the state from using marijuana alone as evidence of child abuse or neglect. The change is meant to protect parents and guardians from discrimination around cannabis use and possession, which the commonwealth legalized in 2021.

The Senate Courts of Justice Committee, voted 15–0 to report the measure, SB 115, which is sponsored by Senate President Pro Tempore Louise Lucas (D). If it becomes law, the measure would further provide that drug testing in child custody and visitation matters “shall exclude testing for any substance permitted for lawful use by an adult” under the state’s alcohol, cannabis and drug laws.

A person’s “lawful possession or consumption” of those substances, the bill says, “shall not serve as a basis to restrict custody or visitation unless other facts establish that such possession or consumption is not in the best interest of the child.”

According to a Department of Planning and Budget summary of the legislation, an enactment clause would direct the state Board of Social Services to amend its regulations, guidance documents and other materials to comply with the provisions of the bill.

The changes would incur no fiscal impact, the department’s statement says.

An identical measure, HB 833, passed the full House of Delegates in a 56–43 vote last month.

Chelsea Higgs Wise, of the advocacy group Marijuana Justice, which backed the bill, told Marijuana Moment she’s optimistic about its chances of being enacted. The governor’s administration gave suggestions last year, she said, which were taken into account along with feedback from the Senate committee.

The group also worked with Virginia NORML, which Wise said had reported that some medical marijuana patients had been impacted by the current law.

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NYC public school aide obsessed with ‘queer vampires’ accused of sexually molesting 8-year-old girl

A former aide at a Harlem public school in New York City has been arrested on child sex crime charges.

Miles (Myles) McNeal, 25, of Yonkers, who uses “they/he” pronouns and who during his free time before the incident would rant about topics ranging from “sexy” and “queer” vampire stories to the “white supremacy” of the “capitalist system,” has been accused of sexually abusing an 8-year-old girl over nearly a year.

McNeal has been charged with child sex abuse, using a child in a sexual performance, and other lesser counts, court records show. He is being held at Rikers Island. McNeal pleaded not guilty to the charges in Manhattan Criminal Court on Friday.

He was arrested on Thursday by detectives with the Manhattan Child Abuse Squad. A judge set his bail at $75,000 cash or $200,000 bond.

According to charging documents, McNeal first began to target the 8-year-old student victim on Sept. 8, 2022. He allegedly molested and took nude photos of the child at the school. The abuse lasted until at least Aug. 18, 2023, prosecutors said. NYPD released a mugshot of McNeal on Satuday with arresting details.

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Senators Obliterate Zuckerberg For ‘Helping’ Pedos Find Child Sex Abuse Content

During a remarkable Senate hearing Wednesday, Republican Senators wiped the floor with Meta owner Mark Zuckerberg, exposing how his company has acted woefully when it comes to child sexual abuse material and other harmful content on its platforms that has directly led to the deaths of children.

By the end of the hearing Zuckerberg was utterly humiliated, forced to stand and face the families of victims who have suffered because of his failures, and told that he should be sued into oblivion for gross dereliction of duty.

During the hearing titled ‘Big Tech and the Online Child Sexual Exploitation Crisis’, Senator Ted Cruz essentially accused Zuckerberg of helping pedophiles gain access to child porn on his platforms.

“Every parent in America is terrified about the garbage that is directed at our kids,” Cruz told Zuckerberg, adding “the phones they have are portals to predators…and each of your companies could do a lot more to prevent it.”

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Maine Police to Probe Predator Poacher’s Bust To Ensure Rights of Alleged Pedo Weren’t Violated

Police in Maine say they’re investigating the Predator Poacher group’s recent bust of an alleged pedophile, claiming they want to ensure the rights of the suspect weren’t violated.

In footage recorded by group leader Alex Rosen, a Somerset County officer can be heard telling Rosen he was under orders not to accept evidence from the group, which had just garnered a taped confession of guilt from an alleged child predator they’d baited online, and that only information given to the officer by the suspect could be accepted.

“We had a catch today in Maine where the PREDATOR admits to real life victims, child porn, an attraction to infants, and sexual intent with a 13-year-old decoy… All of this was bundled into a 2 hour long confession, and Somerset county cops didn’t want to even view the evidence. Instead they let a dangerous predator drive off…” Rosen documented on X Sunday, tagging the Maine State Police in the post.

Rosen published screenshots of graphic text message conversations exchanged with the alleged child predator, who believed he was speaking to a 13-year-old before attempting to go meet the child in person.

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Toddler, two, is found dead in home of Massachusetts Police Lieutenant James Feeley more than a month after he was charged with child rape

A two-year old girl was found unresponsive at the home of a longtime Massachusetts cop who was arrested last month for allegedly raping a child under the age of 12.

Winthrop Police lieutenant James Feeley, 56, is currently being held on $200,000 bail on charges including aggravated rape of a child and two counts of indecent assault and battery on a child under the age of 14, and was therefore not at the home when the toddler was found.

A 911 call was received at 10:20am on Friday morning. When emergency services arrived on the scene, the youngster was rushed to the hospital where the girl died, reports Boston25.

The child was rushed to hospital in the fire chief’s own car as they were first to arrive. Two EMT’s performed CPR on the toddler.

‘They made the decision to transport this child to Massachusetts General Hospital in the back of the fire chief’s vehicle,’ Winthrop Police Chief Terence Delehanty said.

‘The fire department did a heroic job today and made decisive decisions under emergency conditions to get this child the medical treatment necessary as soon as possible,’ said Chief Delehanty.

An initial investigation ‘indicates no signs of foul play or physical trauma. ‘We are awaiting an autopsy to determine cause of death,’ a spokesperson for Suffolk County District Attorney Kevin Hayden said in a statement.

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California LGBTQ+ center director arrested in multi-agency child sex-ring operation

The Director of the Rainbow Resource Center of Modesto was arrested among 17 other men in a multi-agency sting operation targeting men for allegedly eliciting sex from minors according to a report from the Modesto Bee.

According to the report, Gerad Slayton, 42, and sixteen other men were taken into custody by the Turlock Police Department after falling into a sting designed to ensnare sexual predators reportedly contacting minors with the intent to have sex with them. 

The Rainbow Resource Center posted a statement to Facebook saying, “We want to assure our community that we take these allegations with the utmost seriousness. [Slayton’s] actions do not represent our organization’s values or mission.” They added, “In accordance with our unwavering commitment to upholding the highest standards of conduct and integrity, we are addressing the issue within the rainbow resource center.

“We acknowledge the impact that the situation may have had on the community. We understand that trust is earned through consistent and accountable actions. We are dedicated to rebuilding any trust that may have been affected by the situation. As an organization that is at the forefront of advocacy and support for the LGBTQ+ community, our actions must reflect our dedication to these principles.”

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Maine moves to create ‘sanctuary state’ for child sex changes

A Maine judiciary committee will decide on Wednesday morning whether a bill permitting minors to travel to the state to seek sex changes and granting the state custody over children will move to the floor. 

LD1735, also called An Act to Safeguard Gender-affirming Health Care, was introduced to the House of Representatives in the state in April of 2023 by Rep. Laurie Osher of Orono, and is cosponsored by Reps Erin Sheehan of Biddeford, Nina Milliken of Blue Hill, Suzanne Salisbury of Westbrook, Mark Worth of Ellsworth, and Rep. Matt Moonen of Portland as well as Senator Anne Carney of Cumberland.

Courage is a Habit, a group fighting for parental rights in states across the nation, is leading an effort to stop this bill. With a deadline of 10 pm on Tuesday, the group urges the public to contact members of the state judiciary committee to voice their concerns. 

Alvin Lui, president of Courage is a Habit, told The Post Millennial that people who do not live in Maine should contact the committee members as well as Maine residents as the bill “affects everybody’s parental rights.”

Sample emails provided by the group tell the members that “There is a lack of long-term studies on the benefits of ‘gender-affirming care,’ which could result in the life-long sterilization and surgical mutilation of children,” “With lawsuits against hospitals and schools on the rise in 2023, the public is becoming more aware of the potential risks associated with this bill,” and “Protecting parental rights and the well-being of children should be our top priority. I urge you to vote “ought not to pass” on LD 1735.”

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Radical trans activist is quietly removed from new WHO transgender health panel – after calling for children to be rushed onto puberty blockers

The World Health Organization has quietly axed a trans activist with extreme views on medicating children from its transgender health policy panel.

DailyMail.com reported last week that Florence Ashley was among the WHO’s 21-person committee tasked with setting international treatment guidelines for treating gender dysphoria.

Following the selection, it emerged the Canadian – who has no medical background – had published several papers calling for trans children to be given puberty blockers without mental health evaluations.

The committee members were announced on January 3, but a revision to the list published Monday no longer listed Ashley as a panelist. 

The WHO said the exclusion was due to ‘a conflict in schedules’. Despite announcing just a few weeks ago that Ashely would be included on the panel, the latest version of the biographies list said Ashely ‘notified WHO in 2023 that they would be unable to participate’.   

Ashley – whose pronouns are they/them/that b***h – is a Canadian law professor WHERE? WHAT UNI? who specializes in transgender rights. 

They have co-written a study that said puberty blockers and hormone therapies ‘ought to be treated as the default option’ for children with gender dysphoria. 

They have also said that social transition, such as calling a child by their preferred pronouns, and puberty blockers ‘should be made readily available to all those who wish for them. Together we must recognise that exploration is best fostered not by delaying transition, but through transition.’

They have a significant TikTok following where they express hardline views on trans issues, calling for mental health checks on trans children to be scrapped before they are given puberty blockers and hormone drugs.

Ashley said on TikTok recently when discussing an academic paper they co-authored on the subject: ‘Is there any reason to ask people to go through a lengthy and complex gender assessment in order to access gender-affirming care, or is that useless and should the time best be put in supporting decision-making.

‘And what our article concludes is that there’s really no evidence that gender assessments work… it’s just a lengthier process for no real reason.’

They added: ‘Gender assessments are really an unnecessary form of gatekeeping that trans communities have been opposing for a while.’

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