ASSEMBLY SCIENCE, INNOVATION AND TECHNOLOGY COMMITTEE

STATEMENT TO

ASSEMBLY, No. 5004

with committee amendments

STATE OF NEW JERSEY

DATED:  APRIL 10, 2025

      The Assembly Science, Innovation and Technology Committee reports favorably and with committee amendments Assembly Bill No. 5004.

      As amended and reported, this bill amends and updates the law prohibiting child sexual abuse and exploitation material in two important respects.  First, under the bill, the statute concerning child sexual abuse and exploitation material is separated from its current placement within the statute concerning child endangerment to create a separate and distinct crime.  This is intended to provide clarity in law enforcement, court documents, and the analysis and tracking of crime statistics when referring to child sexual abuse and exploitation material, rather than the broader crime of child endangerment.  Because of this recodification of the statute, it is necessary to also update the cross references in other sections of law that refer to either child sexual abuse and exploitation material or child endangerment.  Second, under the bill, the crime of child sexual abuse and exploitation material is expanded to include manipulated depictions that, by means of image manipulation, creation, or modification, appear to show an identifiable child or a purported child engaging in a prohibited sexual act or in the simulation of such an act.

      The bill also amends current law concerning obscenity to include manipulated depictions that, by means of image manipulation, creation, or modification, appear to show a purported child engaging in a prohibited sexual act or in the simulation of such an act.  Under current jurisprudence, the distinction between child sexual abuse and exploitation material and obscenity is that child sexual abuse and exploitation material involves the depiction of an actual victim (i.e., an identifiable child), while obscenity does not require the depiction of an actual victim.

      The bill also amends current law concerning leaders of networks that share child sexual abuse or exploitation material to conform with the provision of the child sexual abuse or exploitation material statute concerning possession with intent to distribute.  Under current law, leading a network that shares child sexual abuse or exploitation material is: a crime of the first degree if the offense involves 100,000 or more items depicting the sexual exploitation or abuse of a child; a crime of the second degree if the offense involves at least 1,000 but less than 100,000 items; and a crime of the third degree if the offense involves less than 1,000 items.  Under the bill, leading a network that shares child sexual abuse or exploitation material is a crime of the first degree if the offense involves 1,000 or more items; otherwise, it is a crime of the second degree.  These are the same thresholds as the crime of possession with intent to distribute child sexual abuse or exploitation material.

      A crime of the first degree is punishable by a term of imprisonment of 10 to 20 years, a fine of up to $200,000, or both.  A crime of the second degree is punishable by a term of imprisonment of five to 10 years, a fine of up to $150,000, or both.  A crime of the third degree is punishable by a term of imprisonment of three to five years, a fine of up to $15,000, or both.

      Finally, the bill also amends the invasion of privacy statute in two important respects.  First, the statute is amended to include manipulated depictions that, by means of image manipulation, creation, or modification, appear to show an intimate or sexually-explicit image of a person who did not in fact consent to such depiction or engage in the depicted conduct.  Second, the statute is amended to clarify that a person’s consent to being photographed, filmed, or recorded in an intimate or sexual manner does not imply consent to the distribution of such images.

COMMITTEE AMENDMENTS:

      The committee amendments:

      (1)  replace references to “child pornography” with “child sexual abuse or exploitation material”;

      (2)  update various amendatory sections to reflect changes made to the underlying statutes pursuant to P.L.2024, c.83 and P.L.2024, c.92;

      (3)  add a section amending N.J.S.A.2C:21-17.8 to add a cross reference to child sexual abuse and exploitation materials;

      (4)  provide that the bill takes effect 30 days after enactment rather than immediately; and

      (5)  make technical changes.