Parents, kids need to note troubles that can accompany technology

9-5-2012 Oklahoma:

THE high school student probably thought he was being funny. What he was being was stupid, and now he's in the kind of serious trouble that could follow him the rest of his life.

Tulsa County sheriff's deputies arrested the student last week after he was accused of tweeting a photo of a mentally disabled classmate whose pants and underwear were pulled down as he used a urinal.

Officials at Union High School said several students were upset about the photo, and named 18-year-old Jonathan Devito as the person who sent it. He was hauled off to the Tulsa jail on complaints of peeping Tom with electronic equipment, manufacturing child pornography (the student in the photo was 16), distributing child porn and violating the Oklahoma Computer Crimes Act.

How serious are those crimes? Under Oklahoma law, it's a felony to publish child pornography, distribute it or take part in preparing it. If Devito winds up being convicted, he could face a maximum of 20 years in prison for each count, a $10,000 fine, or both. And, he would have to register as a sex offender. ...continued... by Oklahoman Editorial