Florida bill increasing penalties for child pornography passes through House committee

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – A bill that would increase offense levels for crimes related to child pornography in Florida passed through a House subcommittee Thursday.

Rep. Jessica Baker, R-Jacksonville, filed the bill, HB 1545, which passed unopposed through the House Criminal Justice Subcommittee.

Sen. Jonathan Martin R-Fort Myers, filed a similar bill in the Senate, SB 1656.

“HB 1545 amends the offense severity ranking chart to increase offense levels for several crimes relating to possession, promotion or production of child pornography,” Baker said.

Baker said Florida has “consistently lower levels of scoring and punishment guidelines” pertaining to online child exploitation compared to other states.

“This legislative proposal increases the levels of these offenses and will help protect our children, act as a clear deterrence and provide appropriate punishment in line with the severity of these crimes,” she said.

Under the bill, Baker said if a person produces child pornography or promotes or aids in the sexual performance of a child, they will score mandatory prison.

Someone who possesses images of child pornography with or without the intent to sell in Florida would also score mandatory prison, under the bill.

Clay County detective Ryan Ellis, who is also a task force officer with Homeland Security Investigations, and has spent the last 15 years working specifically in child exploitation investigations and human trafficking, thanked Baker for her proposal.

“I am here on behalf of the millions of children throughout and millions of children in the pictures that do not have a voice,” Ellis said.

Ellis said that “all of [his] colleagues, prosecutors and people” have had complaints and issues with “some of the disparities” related to crimes committed against children.

“Those children are not just pictures, they’re not just images, they are actual children,” Ellis said. “And every time that those files are shared again, those children are re-exploited over, and over and over again.”

Ellis brought up some examples of crimes in Florida that score higher penalties than possession of child sexual abuse material including pawning a stolen guitar, which Ellis said has a punishment of a second degree felony.

“The possession of a video of an infant and a toddler being raped, tortured and assaulted for hours, and those files are actual children, those files and those crimes currently do not reflect the severity of what they are,” Ellis said.

Once passed by both chambers and signed by the governor, it would take effect Oct. 1.