This bill amends New Jersey laws concerning the sexual exploitation and abuse of children, specifically by replacing the term "child pornography" with "child sexual abuse or exploitation material" (CSAEM) to better reflect the severity of these offenses. It introduces stricter penalties for crimes related to CSAEM, including defining specific offenses such as photographing or filming a child in a prohibited sexual act as a second-degree crime. The legislation also establishes mandatory minimum sentences for possession or distribution of large quantities of CSAEM and clarifies that each depiction is treated as a separate item for aggregation purposes. Additionally, it mandates lifetime parole supervision for certain offenders unless deemed unnecessary by the court.

Furthermore, the bill enhances the legal framework for addressing child sexual exploitation by allowing victims to pursue civil actions against exploiters and recover three times the financial gains made by perpetrators. It updates the criteria for expungement applications, specifying that serious crimes, including those related to CSAEM, are ineligible for expungement. The bill also outlines disqualification criteria for employment in child care settings for individuals with a history of crimes against children, aiming to protect vulnerable populations. Overall, the legislation seeks to strengthen protections for children and improve the accountability of offenders while modernizing the language used in the law.

Statutes affected:
Introduced: 2A:30B-1, 2C:7-2, 2C:24-4.1, 2C:43-6.4, 2C:44-6.3, 9:3-40.5, 18A:35-4.32, 30:4C-26.8, 30:4C-27.19, 30:5B-6.14, 30:5B-25.7, 52:17B-193