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Was this illegal?

BushiBushi Registered User regular
in Help / Advice Forum
My ex sent gore images of a human body mangled in a car wreck to my 11year old daughter. He's admitted to doing this on purpose. Is there a law against this?

Posts

  • EclecticGrooveEclecticGroove Registered User regular
    You could call up your local Police via a non emergency number and ask. It may be grounds for some sort of harassment or child endangerment case, but things like that vary a hell of a lot depending on where you are. Often things like that need to be fairly persistent (with a documentation) and not a one time thing before much can be done.

  • VeeveeVeevee WisconsinRegistered User regular
    Most states have laws against distributing obscene material to minors, and I'm pretty sure those pictures would be considered obscene. If you haven't yet, don't delete the pictures and go to your local police station and ask to talk to a detective, or an officer at the very least. EclecticGroove is right that harassment charges generally require a history, but not distributing obscene material to minors.

    I'd also go through the kids phone making sure there isn't anything else, and then contact your phone company and get the assholes number blocked before he sends your kid even more harmful materials.

  • November FifthNovember Fifth Registered User regular
    Your question has too many unknowns.

    Is this the father of your daughter?

    Were the images sent to get back at you and your daughter or as an ill advised "scared straight" tactic?

    If these are harassing communications from an unrelated party, it should be relatively easy to get a Child Protective Order which will make further electronic or physical contact with your daughter illegal.

    If this is her father, then the situation is significantly more complicated and should probably be discussed with a family lawyer.

    I would definitely speak with the police, so they will have a record of this incident.

  • EncEnc A Fool with Compassion Pronouns: He, Him, HisRegistered User regular
    Police are a good way to go, but context here is important. If this is meant as a misguided constructive/learning message thats one thing. If it is digital harassment, that's something else entirely.

  • NoquarNoquar Registered User regular
    Maybe we all back up and ask the first question - have you asked him why? And if so, what's the response? If not, why not?

  • PacificstarPacificstar Registered User regular
    Noquar wrote: »
    Maybe we all back up and ask the first question - have you asked him why? And if so, what's the response? If not, why not?

    There's not any "Why" that makes it OK to text GORE to an 11 year old child.

  • ScooterScooter Registered User regular
    I could see it being done for 'if you don't wear your seatbelt, this could happen to you!' type reasoning. Didn't they use to show videos like that in school? I wouldn't do it myself but I wouldn't call it illegal.

  • NoquarNoquar Registered User regular
    Pacificstar wrote: »
    Noquar wrote: »
    Maybe we all back up and ask the first question - have you asked him why? And if so, what's the response? If not, why not?

    There's not any "Why" that makes it OK to text GORE to an 11 year old child.

    I also never said it was OK in my response, but my questions still stand.

  • TNTrooperTNTrooper Registered User regular
    Scooter wrote: »
    I could see it being done for 'if you don't wear your seatbelt, this could happen to you!' type reasoning. Didn't they use to show videos like that in school? I wouldn't do it myself but I wouldn't call it illegal.

    Usually had to get the parent to sign a weaver before you could see that stuff and I don't think there is any Drivers Ed course for 11 year olds.

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  • EncEnc A Fool with Compassion Pronouns: He, Him, HisRegistered User regular
    Pacificstar wrote: »
    Noquar wrote: »
    Maybe we all back up and ask the first question - have you asked him why? And if so, what's the response? If not, why not?

    There's not any "Why" that makes it OK to text GORE to an 11 year old child.

    Yeah, it's never ok but the degree in which something can be done about it is pretty context dependent.

  • PinfeldorfPinfeldorf Yeah ZestRegistered User regular
    edited March 2015
    When you say "gore" is it as bad as some of those Canadian workplace safety PSAs floating around youtube? Some of those are pretty damned disturbing, if not inherently violent. It may interest you to know that http://www.msn.com/en-us/news/crime/teacher-jailed-for-showing-high-school-class-violent-movie/ar-BBifj9p happened the other day. May let you talk to your ex and be like, "Hey, stop this you goose, this lady got arrested for something similar". Maybe they're similar, maybe not, but there is a bit of a corollary to draw between the two.

    Pinfeldorf on
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