a bill that will reduce the possession of child pornography from a felony crime to a misdemeanor. Supporters of the bill claim that the legislation is necessary because minors could face felony charges for possession of pornographic images.
“A downgrade to a misdemeanor is also urgently required in order to be able to respond appropriately and with the necessary flexibility to the large proportion of juvenile offenders,” the legislation reads,“Here, too, the perpetrators generally do not act in order to be sexually aroused by the child pornography content, but rather out of a drive typical of the adolescent stage of development, such as naivety, curiosity, thirst for adventure or the desire to impress.
But rather than simply address this specific matter in the legislation, the German government opted to reclassify the crime altogether, for anyone, regardless of age. The effect will be that adults who possess child pornography will now be simply charged with a misdemeanor rather than the felony treatment they should receive.
The law leaves in place a minimum one-year jail sentence for the crime, but it will have a devastating effect on the safety of children as pedophiles who possess child pornography will likely face significantly shorter sentences than they otherwise would.
There is absolutely no excuse for this horrific action which will have devastating consequences on child safety in Germany.