Pandora’s Blog

A new national poll was released early this month from the University of Michigan C.S. Mott Children’s Hospital. Focusing on Children’s Health, it asked adults to rate 17 different health problems for children living in their communities.
Surprisingly… or not-so-surprisingly, childhood obesity now ranks among the public’s top three concerns for children’s health, ahead of [...]

I came across an interesting piece today on the law.com website. In Playing With Privacy, Harry Valetk addresses the complete shift in humanity to online/electronic communications and discusses the paths, options, and current practices for trying to make sure that kids, who are already at that ‘online communication’ age, aren’t being taken advantage of.
He addresses [...]

In my daily quests for information and news on the issue of child online safety, I came across an article in the Nashua Telegraph about the efforts of New Hampshire police and the attorney general.
The article focused on the new Internet safety program called “Connect with Your Kids,” specifically, an Internet safety course in Hudson, [...]

Can you believe this? If you follow the issue (or even just the news), it is no secret to you that the Attorneys General from 8 states (North Carolina, Connecticut, Georgia, Idaho, Mississippi, New Hampshire, Ohio and Pennsylvania) asked MySpace to provide the number of registered sex offenders using the site and where they live. [...]

Florida law enforcement agents launched a program aimed at teaching children about the potential dangers of the Internet. With the help of Alicia Kozakiewicz, who was abducted by an online predator when she was 13, Attorney General Bill McCollum is touring the state Friday to promote the campaign.
The campaign includes the creation of Operation SafeSurf, [...]

This week in Louisiana, more than 100 law enforcement officials attended the Southwest Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force Seminar from all across the state.
Attorney General Charles Foti hosted the event to educate police and others on the dangers lurking on the Internet. The seminar’s other purpose was to unite police and other authorities [...]

A 23-year-old teacher was arrested in the Philly area for having sexual relations with a 14- and 15-year-old student.
Jeffrey Anderson had been the building substitute at Tohickon Middle School in Plumstead Township. He provided a 14-page confession when Detectives pulled him out of school. He was fired immediately.
The parents of one of the girls [...]

This is actually a lighter post on the issue and worth a giggle…
I was watching Reno 911! Last night (one of my favorite shows) and there was a scene where the Deputy Travis Junior character (played by writer/director/creator Ben Garant) is online posing as a young girl, waiting for predators to strike up a [...]

There’s a cool story in the Tucson Citizen about the efforts of the Sexual Assault Felony Enforcement team (S.A.F.E.). The team was formed in August 1999 and is responsible for 82 arrests, 82 indictments, 66 convictions and 142 search warrants issued through August 2006 (the first 7 years).
The team consists of Tucson police Detective Jim [...]

The Hartsville SC (Myrtle Beach/Florence area) Police Department was receiving complaints of online predators last month. So, they set up a sting on the computer, as many agencies are doing, where officers pose as teenage girls.
They have made their FIFTH arrest: Frank Wallace Reynolds of Spartanburg.
This scumbag was arrested on Saturday, outside a Hartsville [...]