Tougher Child Sex-Crime Bill Clears House

The House unanimously passed a bill Thursday to crack down on sexual crimes against young children, particularly in cases involving the Internet.

The measure, which passed 416-0, would create a series of categories of child-sex offenses and increase penalties for adults who seek and engage in sexual activity with kids.

The Clinton administration said it supports the bill, which advanced to the Senate.

Rep. Bill McCollum (R-Fla.), a sponsor, said use of the Internet by more than 10 million children has contributed to a “chilling mix” that has resulted in “far too many terrible tragedies that steal innocence from our children and create scars for life.”

Other sponsors said that children who seemingly are safe in the comfort of their homes and classrooms too often become victims of sexual predators who view the Internet as a new window through which they can terrorize children anonymously.

Among its provisions, the bill would:

* Establish fines and terms of up to five years in prison for anyone using the mail, Internet or other means to contact a minor for sex.

* Double from five to 10 years in prison the penalty for enticing a minor to cross state lines to engage in sexual activity, and increase from 10 to 15 years the maximum penalty for persuading a minor to engage in prostitution.

* Make it a crime to use the mail, Internet or other means to distribute personal information about a minor for sexual activity.

* Prohibit unsupervised access to the Internet by federal prisoners, encourage state officials to take similar steps and require the U.S. attorney general to survey state policies.

* Mandate life imprisonment for anyone convicted of a sexual offense that causes the death of someone younger than 14, if the death penalty is not imposed.

* Allow federal investigations of child kidnapping cases to begin immediately.