THE SAUGUS ADVOCATE – FriDAy, JAnUAry 19, 2024 Page 3 Representative Wong supports bill to criminalize revenge porn and educate minor off enders through diversion B OSTON – State Representative Donald H. Wong (R- Saugus) is backing efforts to crack down on “revenge porn” by supporting legislation that imposes strong penalties for sharing sexually explicit images or videos without the consent of the individual being photographed or recorded. House Bill 4241, An Act to prevent abuse and exploitation, would also allow for the commitment of minor off enders to the Department of Youth Services while establishing an alternative comprehensive educational diversion program to help adolescents understand the legal and non-legal consequences of possessing or disseminating explicit visual material. The bill was engrossed by the House of Representatives on a vote of 151-0 on January 10. According to Representative Wong, the educational diversion program will be developed and implemented by the Attorney General in consultation with the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education, the Department of Youth Services, and the Massachusetts District Attorneys Association, and will be reviewed annually and updated as needed. The House bill also encourages school districts to implement media literacy skills instruction at all grade levels, and to incorporate aspects of the educational diversion program as a learning tool for students. Massachusetts is one of only two states without a law banning revenge porn, the other being South Carolina. House Bill 4241 would change that by imposing a punishment of up Donald Wong State Representative to 2 ½ years in a House of Correction, a $10,000 fi ne, or both a fi ne and imprisonment for individuals found guilty of disseminating explicit visual materials of another person without their consent. House Bill 4241 also increases the existing fine for criminal harassment from $1,000 to $5,000 and amends the defi nition of abuse to include coercive control. Under the bill, coercive control is defi ned as an act or pattern of behavior committed with the intent to substantially restrict an individual’s safety or autonomy through threat, intimidation, harassment, isolation, control, coercion, or compelled compliance. Representative Wong supported a similar bill fi led by former Governor Charlie Baker during the 2021-2022 legislative session, which was engrossed by the House of Representatives on May 26, 2022. Despite unanimous support in the House, the Senate took no action on the bill until the fi nal day of session on January 3, 2023, engrossing an amended version of the bill that could not be reconciled with the House bill before time ran out. During fl oor debate, Representative Wong supported an amendment to the bill that addresses non-consensual “deepfake pornography” involving the use of digitization, which is defi ned as “creat(ing) or alter(ing) visual material, including, but not limited to, through the use of computer-generated images, in a manner that would falsely appear to a reasonable person to be an authentic representation of the person depicted.” The amendment stipulates that the dissemination of deepfake pornography will be punishable by up to 2 ½ years in a House of Correction, a $10,000 fi ne, or both. House Bill 4241, as amended, now moves to the Senate for its consideration. 425r Broadway, Saugus Located adjacent to Kohls Plaza Route 1 South in Saugus at the intersection of Walnut Street We are on MBTA Bus Route 429 781-231-1111 We are a Skating Rink with Bowling Alleys, Arcade and two TV’s where the ball games are always on! PUBLIC SKATING SCHEDULE 12-7 p.m. Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday $9.00 Price includes Roller Skates Rollerblades/inline skates $3.00 additional cost Private Parties 7:30-11 p.m. $10.00 Price includes Roller Skates Adult Night 18+ Only Private Parties Private Parties 4-7 p.m. $9.00 12-9 p.m. 7:30-11 p.m. $10. 18+ Adults Only After 7 PM $9.00 Everyone must pay admission after 6 p.m. Sorry No Checks - ATM on site Roller skate rentals included in all prices Inline Skate Rentals $3.00 additional BIRTHDAY & PRIVATE PARTIES AVAILABLE www.roller-world.com
4 Publizr Home