Kids Porn Cases Take Heavy Toll on Cops

(NEWSER) - An international pedophile gang that preyed on infants through teens has been convicted in a groundbreaking case in Scotland that sentenced lawbreakers for the first time for conspiring to carry out sex attacks, reports the Times of London. The eight men will be imprisoned for an indefinite period until they are judged to no longer be a threat. The judge blasted their "utterly horrific" crimes, often carried out against the children of friends. More than 100 men have been linked to the gang. More»

Abusers targeted victims as young as 12 months old

(NEWSER) - Australian authorities have busted 19 men, including a retired cop, in a 70-nation kiddie porn ring that distributed at least 500,000 images and 15,000 videos of youngsters, reports the BBC. Some of the abuse victims were as young as 12 months old and some children were abused for as long as two hours at a time, said investigators, who termed the abuse among the worst they've seen. Victims appeared to be from Eastern Europe and North and South America. More»

Six adults charged, two convicted in case that shook small town

(NEWSER) - Four children, the youngest just 5 years old, were fed powerful painkillers they knew as "silly pills" and forced to perform sex shows for crowds in a small Texas town, AP reports. Locals had believed the site of the shows was just a swinger’s club. Six adults have been charged in the case, including a parent of children involved; two were convicted and another will be tried today. All three face life in prison. More»

Sandusky victim driven from high school by bullying

(NEWSER) - Penn State has chosen the former director of the FBI to head its investigation into Jerry Sandusky's alleged sex abuse scandal. Louis Freeh, who headed the FBI from 1993 to 2001, says the internal probe might extend back to 1975. The university has faced complaints over choosing two university trustees to oversee the investigation, the AP notes. One of them, Merck CEO Kenneth Frazier, emphasized Freeh’s independence and said even the board of trustees might be investigated. More»

Crime stats don't reflect reality, top cops say

(NEWSER) - Many more rapes take place in the US than the FBI's figures suggest, say campaigners urging the federal government to broaden its definition of rape. The FBI's definition, written more than 80 years ago, defines rape as "the carnal knowledge of a female, forcibly and against her will." Critics—including many police chiefs—say this definition ignores male victims, and means cases in which the victim was drunk or drugged, as well as ones where anal or oral penetration or penetration with an object has taken place, are not classed as rape in federal crime reports. More»