Gary Hart: “A little over a year ago, a 13-year-old girl was abducted from her home near Pittsburgh. She was found tied to a bed in…”

“A little over a year ago, a 13-year-old girl was abducted from her home near Pittsburgh. She was found tied to a bed in a Herndon, Virginia, townhome. The adult male abductor had met this girl on the Internet and had bragged to other would-be child molesters that he had finally found a young girl to make his sex slave. The man had a history of viewing and exchanging child pornography over the Internet. Currently, law enforcement has little power to stop this. The bill today, which includes the AMBER Alert, which helps to locate abducted children, it also includes, most importantly, laws to strengthen the ability to ensure children are not abducted in the first place. The amendment further strengthens the bill by making it illegal to possess, distribute or create computer or computer-related images depicting child pornography. Child pornography feeds the sick desires of pedophiles. It entices its viewers to take advantage of real young children. This amendment provides another tool to get perpetrators of child abuse and child pornography off the streets and out of Internet chat rooms before more children are targeted.”