Worst of the Internet – Manual on Molesting Children

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A 170 page manual, with instructions on how to find and molest children, is being passed around on an email listserv.  Police in Orange County, Florida are horrified by this discovery.  They have no idea where it originated, but they hope to track where it goes.  WFTV-TV in Orlando interviews Det. Phillip Graves, a sex crimes investigator, who says this booklet is one of the most disturbing things he's seen online.  The author calls himself “the mule” but police have no idea who he is. The story is generating outrage and buzz about First Amendment rights. Investigators say sending the manual by email or possessing it is not a crime.  You can guess the reaction from a website called shuddup.com.

Young Sex Offenders: Public or Private Knowledge?

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The national debate about kids who are convicted of sex offenses is under the microscope in St. Louis. Is it the public’s right to know who these kids are and does it justify the impact on a young person’s life for years to come? As a juvenile, Michael Church was convicted of a sex crime. Now at age 22, Church is in jail again, accused of trying to lure two girls to his home, according to KMOV-TV.

I Got Arrested! Now What?

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Here’s a new way to teach kids about the juvenile court system from the Center for Urban Pedagogy: It’s a comic strip called I Got Arrested! Now What? This is a fold out poster/comic that was developed for kids in New York. The comic follows one teen through his experience in the system and was developed by The Center for Urban Pedagogy in collaboration with the Center for Court Innovation and the Youth Justice Board. The comic was drawn by graphic novelist Danica Novgorodoff and can be downloaded as a PDF or purchased through PayPal.

OMG Look What Some Teens are Texting

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Sex, drugs and alcohol are hot topics for some teenagers. So hot, they’ve got a special shorthand text language that leaves adults clueless. Check this out:

IWS   =  I want sex
Cu46  =  See you for sex
a-boot   =  Under the influence of drugs
WTG 4 a \%/    =  Want to go for a drink? No 420? Wiyp?  =   No weed? What is your problem?

Gay Rights Groups Push Anti-Bullying Campaign

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There's a new campaign that focuses on empowering gay students and their supporters to report incidents of bullying, harassment or discrimination to the Office for Civil Rights at the U.S. Education Department. The group called PFLAG (Parents, Families and Friends of Lesbians and Gays) has partnered with the Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network to launch the Claim Your Rights campaign, which reveals some surprising facts:

Approximately 85 percent of high school students report being harassed in school because of their real or perceived sexual orientation. Only 18 percent of LGBT students report that their schools have policies offering comprehensive protections. The campaign provides detailed information on how to file a report as well as an easy to print fact sheet. To further check out the campaign, click here.

At Risk Kids: Education Strategy Guides

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Three new guides are available from a center whose name says it all: The National Evaluation and Technical Assistance Center for the Education of Children and Youth Who Are Neglected, Delinquent, or At-Risk . This center has created two strategy guides and one issue brief aimed at helping teachers, administrators and program coordinators provide better education to at-risk and delinquent kids.  Check them out below:

Making It Count: Strategies for Improving Mathematics Instruction for Students in Short-Term Facilities

Adolescent Literacy Guide: Meeting the Literacy Needs of Students in Juvenile Justice Facilities

Issue Brief: The Importance of Literacy for Youth Involved in the Juvenile Justice System

State Lists Kids Programs that Work

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If you’re looking for evidence-based programs that work, the Governor’s Office for Children and Families is providing a list that focuses on kids.  It’s called the Compendium of Best and Promising Programs and Practices for Systems of Care. The programs are listed by result area, strategy and target age.  It has categories for things you might be focused on, such as “Early Childhood” and “Ensuring School Readiness.” Each program lists evidence levels: proven, promising or screened. For the complete Compendium, click here.

States Struggle with Teen Sexting Laws

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Nearly 20 states have enacted new laws, or are working on measures that deal with teenage sexting, aimed at treating children more leniently than adults. The Wall Street Journal reports Arizona, Connecticut, Louisiana and Illinois are among the states that enacted laws this year. Many of the new rules impose only modest penalties, such as small fines and short stints in juvenile detention, instead of prison terms and a cameo on the sex offender registry. Across the nation, lawmakers and child advocates are struggling with the issues:  Should they hammer teens, or let parents and schools handle sexting incidents? One in five teens admits to "sexting," according to a survey by the National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy.

Gangs and Drugs: Crisis in Public Schools

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Twenty-seven percent of public school students from 12 to 17-years-old report that kids are using, keeping or selling drugs onschool grounds, according to a study by the National Survey of American Attitudes on Substance Abuse. The survey, done annually over the past 15 years, found many surprising statistics:

Students in schools with gangs and drugs are five times more likely to use marijuana and three times more likely to drink. 46 percent of teens at public schools say there are gangs at their schools compared to only 2 percent of teens at private and religious schools
The percentage of middle schools with drugs on campus (kids 12- to 13- years old and younger) has increased from 23 percent last year to 32 percent this year
Teens with strong family ties are far less likely to smoke, drink or use marijuana or hang out with people who drink regularly, use illegal drugs and abuse prescription drugs

Click here for the full report.

Fighting Underage Drinking

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More than $20 million has been awarded to states nationwide to help combat underage drinking, according a news release from the Department of Justice's Office of Justice Programs (OJP). The federal grant money supports law enforcement, public education and other alliances that deal with young people and is being awarded through a program called Enforcing Underage Drinking Laws. Every territory and state, as well as the District of Columbia, has received $356,400 to go toward activities that hold adults accountable when they provide alcohol to minors. Here's the full news release from the OJP.