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Wendy Murphy
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WENDY MURPHY: PROTECTING KIDS FROM THE SCOURGE OF CHILD PORNOGRAPY

March 30, 2009

When children die – and parents are potential suspects – we often talk about abuse and neglect.

But when sedatives are found in a child’s body or at a crime scene, we need to talk about something else, too.

Child pornography.

The FBI has long taught about the use of sedative drugs in the making of child porn. Benzodiazepines such as Valium and Klonopin – and cheap alternatives such as chloroform  – are commonly used to keep kids calm. Many of these drugs also cause  short-term amnesia such that the victim has little or no memory of the  event when the drugs wear off.

It’s scary to think that ANYONE  would do such a thing to a child, but get this: According to the U.S.  Attorney General, child porn is a multi-billion dollar industry and the  people most likely to be making it are the victims’ parents.

This  sick “industry” not only destroys innocent souls – it is a  life-threatening “business” because the build-up of sedatives in kids’  bodies can cause deadly seizures.

If we’re going to protect  children from this scourge, we have to talk more openly about it,  especially during high profile cases when millions of people are  watching.

JonBenet Ramsey was a beautiful dyed-blonde 6-year-old  when she was found dead in the basement of her home. The day her body  was found, her parents hired criminal attorneys and refused to submit to  separate police interviews. Three search warrants were issued for child  porn, and while police said none was found in the home, we really don’t  know the details of what if anything was found elsewhere – or why they  were looking for child porn – because the files in the case are being  withheld from public view.

We DO know that undigested pineapple was found in the child’s  stomach and we know that a bowl of pineapple found on the kitchen table  was taken as evidence, presumably tested for the presence of drugs. But  we don’t know the results because, again, the file is being hidden.

We  also know that the child had “chronic” vaginal injuries including an  “eroded” hymen, which many experts say is evidence of prior ongoing  sexual abuse. When the parents eventually agreed to be interviewed by  police, they were asked at length about sedatives in the home, such as  Xanax and Klonopin.

According to the federal  government, demand for child porn has skyrocketed because of the  Internet, and will continue to rise unless we do a better job  recognizing and talking about the problem when we see it.

It won’t  be easy – in part because this stuff happens in secret, but also  because we resist thinking about things that don’t feel good – and let’s  face it – it doesn’t feel very good to believe parents sell their  children for sex and porn.


But what’s more important? Children – or the comfort of our denial?
Wendy Murphy is a leading victims rights advocate and nationally recognized television legal analyst.
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