“They are not victimless crimes…that's frustrating to hear”: Qualitative insights from prosecutors working on cases related to technology facilitated child sexual abuse material

IF 3.4 2区心理学 Q1 FAMILY STUDIES

Child Abuse & Neglect Pub Date : 2025-01-01 DOI:10.1016/j.chiabu.2024.107169

Jennifer E. O'Brien , Gina Zwerling Kahn , Leanne Gast , Kimberly J. Mitchell

{"title":"“They are not victimless crimes…that's frustrating to hear”: Qualitative insights from prosecutors working on cases related to technology facilitated child sexual abuse material","authors":"Jennifer E. O'Brien , Gina Zwerling Kahn , Leanne Gast , Kimberly J. Mitchell","doi":"10.1016/j.chiabu.2024.107169","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"<div><h3>Background</h3><div>Child sexual abuse material (CSAM) are any videos or images of individuals under the age of 18 engaging in sexually explicit activities or positions. The incidence and scope of CSAM has increased since the COVID-19 pandemic; however, the prosecution of such crimes has not risen at the same rate.</div></div><div><h3>Objective</h3><div>This study presents exploratory qualitative findings regarding prosecutors' challenges prosecuting CSAM cases from the perspectives of experienced CSAM prosecutors.</div></div><div><h3>Participants</h3><div>A total of 24 prosecutors from 16 different states across the United States who affirmed working on prosecuting CSAM cases participated in a recorded, 1-h, semi-structured interview.</div></div><div><h3>Methods</h3><div>The semi-structured interview guide questions focused on participant's professional experiences prosecuting cases, including things that contributed and detracted from the successful prosecution of CSAM cases. Digital recordings of all interviews were transcribed verbatim and subsequently reviewed for accuracy by research team members. Interviews were coded independently by two members of the research team using a grounded theory approach. Methods to enhance the rigor of the research included regular debriefing, and the use of detailed case notes capturing nonverbal participant cues.</div></div><div><h3>Results</h3><div>Qualitative analysis revealed three main challenges related to prosecution including CSAM awareness, resource allocation, and legal response. Subcategories within themes as well as regional differences are captured and shared.</div></div><div><h3>Conclusions</h3><div>Findings from the current study provide a context for understanding the role of prosecutors in criminal justice response to CSAM, but also point to directions for systemic improvements that would aid in prosecuting these crimes.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":51343,"journal":{"name":"Child Abuse & Neglect","volume":"159 ","pages":"Article 107169"},"PeriodicalIF":3.4000,"publicationDate":"2025-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":"0","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"Child Abuse & Neglect","FirstCategoryId":"102","ListUrlMain":"https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0145213424005623","RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"心理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"","PubModel":"","JCR":"Q1","JCRName":"FAMILY STUDIES","Score":null,"Total":0}

引用次数: 0

Abstract

Background

Child sexual abuse material (CSAM) are any videos or images of individuals under the age of 18 engaging in sexually explicit activities or positions. The incidence and scope of CSAM has increased since the COVID-19 pandemic; however, the prosecution of such crimes has not risen at the same rate.

Objective

This study presents exploratory qualitative findings regarding prosecutors' challenges prosecuting CSAM cases from the perspectives of experienced CSAM prosecutors.

Participants

A total of 24 prosecutors from 16 different states across the United States who affirmed working on prosecuting CSAM cases participated in a recorded, 1-h, semi-structured interview.

Methods

The semi-structured interview guide questions focused on participant's professional experiences prosecuting cases, including things that contributed and detracted from the successful prosecution of CSAM cases. Digital recordings of all interviews were transcribed verbatim and subsequently reviewed for accuracy by research team members. Interviews were coded independently by two members of the research team using a grounded theory approach. Methods to enhance the rigor of the research included regular debriefing, and the use of detailed case notes capturing nonverbal participant cues.

Results

Qualitative analysis revealed three main challenges related to prosecution including CSAM awareness, resource allocation, and legal response. Subcategories within themes as well as regional differences are captured and shared.

Conclusions

Findings from the current study provide a context for understanding the role of prosecutors in criminal justice response to CSAM, but also point to directions for systemic improvements that would aid in prosecuting these crimes.

查看原文本刊更多论文

“这不是没有受害者的犯罪……这听起来令人沮丧”：从事与科技促进儿童性虐待材料相关案件的检察官的定性见解。

背景：儿童性虐待材料（CSAM）是指任何18岁以下的人从事色情活动或立场的视频或图像。自2019冠状病毒病大流行以来，CSAM的发病率和范围有所增加；然而，对这类罪行的起诉并没有以同样的速度增加。目的：本研究从经验丰富的CSAM检察官的角度，对检察官起诉CSAM案件的挑战进行了探索性定性研究。参与者：来自美国16个不同州的24名检察官参与了一项记录的1小时半结构化访谈，他们确认从事起诉CSAM案件的工作。方法：采用半结构化的访谈引导问题，聚焦于参试人员的专业起诉经验，包括对成功起诉CSAM案件的贡献和不利因素。所有访谈的数字录音都被逐字记录下来，随后由研究小组成员审查准确性。访谈由研究小组的两名成员使用扎根理论方法独立编码。提高研究严谨性的方法包括定期汇报，以及使用详细的案例笔记捕捉非语言参与者的线索。结果：定性分析揭示了与起诉相关的三个主要挑战，包括CSAM意识，资源分配和法律回应。主题内的子类别以及区域差异被捕获和共享。结论：目前研究的结果为理解检察官在刑事司法对CSAM的反应中的作用提供了一个背景，但也指出了有助于起诉这些罪行的系统改进方向。

本文章由计算机程序翻译，如有差异，请以英文原文为准。

求助全文

约1分钟内获得全文求助全文

来源期刊

Child Abuse & Neglect Multiple-

CiteScore

7.40

自引率

10.40%

发文量

397

期刊介绍： Official Publication of the International Society for Prevention of Child Abuse and Neglect. Child Abuse & Neglect The International Journal, provides an international, multidisciplinary forum on all aspects of child abuse and neglect, with special emphasis on prevention and treatment; the scope extends further to all those aspects of life which either favor or hinder child development. While contributions will primarily be from the fields of psychology, psychiatry, social work, medicine, nursing, law enforcement, legislature, education, and anthropology, the Journal encourages the concerned lay individual and child-oriented advocate organizations to contribute.