President Obama on Friday signed into law a bill aimed at fighting child pornography, sexual predators and human trafficking.
The Child Protection Act increases the penalties for child pornography, protects child witnesses and gives U.S. marshals new powers to obtain time-sensitive documents involved in the cases. In addition, the law extends federal funding for regional Internet task forces that focus on cybercrimes.
Sponsored by Sens. John Cornyn, Texas Republican, and Richard Blumenthal, Connecticut Democrat, the measure allows task forces to target resources on cases where there is strong evidence that the suspect has engaged in human trafficking for the production of child pornography.
“I’m glad to see the president quickly signed this measure into law to bring greater justice and protection to victims and allow law enforcement to take immediate steps to stop child predators,” Mr. Cornyn said in a statement.
House Judiciary Committee Chairman Lamar Smith, Texas Republican, and Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz, Florida Democrat, co-sponsored the bill in the House.
