'It's been a struggle': How laws are working to keep up with changing technology

Lawyers and judges from across Canada are meeting on P.E.I. this week to discuss how the law can keep up with technology to keep kids safe.

The discussions are part of the National Criminal Law Program, which is attracting about 700 delegates.

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Trish Cheverie, the managing lawyer for legal aid in Summerside, said both the law and technology are changing rapidly, and that makes meetings such as this one important.

"It's been a struggle," said Cheverie.

Even here on P.E.I. this sort of thing happens all the time.- Trish Cheverie

"All of us who work in the criminal justice system have recognized we're scrambling to keep up with the rapid changes in technologies. When the child luring laws were first put in place phones were just phones, and now our children are running around, essentially, with computers."

At the Charlottetown meetings, the P.E.I. legal community has a chance to meet with the country's top legal experts in the field. In turn, those experts get a chance to hear about the situation on P.E.I.

Careful progress

Cheverie said amendments to existing laws are introduced every year, though it may seem like the law is changing slowly. She added it is important to move carefully.

"If you move too quickly, sometimes statutes are passed without sufficient contemplation of the consequences," she said.

The laws are designed to protect children, but Cheverie said a hastily-drafted law can end up harming young people.

She gave the example of high school students who might share a picture of a younger student's naked breasts.

"Even here on P.E.I. this sort of thing happens all the time," said Cheverie.

"If those young men are convicted of distribution of child pornography, the consequences are dire. They will be on the sex offender registry. They will carry that label with them for the rest of their lives. It could, in fact, create the ruination of those young lives."

No more gated yards

Cheverie said she can't share the number of cases of child luring recorded on P.E.I. but the number is shocking.

She said parents need to educate themselves about the risks associated with having their children connected to the internet.

"If their child is alone, unsupervised, using a mobile device, they are vulnerable to some of the worst people in the world," she said.

"It's not as if you can put your child in a gated yard and watch them through the kitchen window anymore."

The National Criminal Law Program runs in Charlottetown from July 4 to 8.

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