The National Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Force Program, consists of state and local law enforcement task forces dedicated to developing effective responses to online enticement of children by sexual predators, child exploitation, and child obscenity and pornography cases. Each State and local task force that is part of the national program shall: 1) consist of State and local investigators, prosecutors, forensic specialists, and education specialists who are dedicated to addressing the goals of the task force; 2) engage in proactive investigations, forensic examinations, and effective prosecutions of Internet crimes against children; 3) provide forensic, preventive, and investigative assistance to parents, educators, prosecutors, law enforcement, and others concerned with Internet crimes against children; 4) develop multijurisdictional, multiagency partnerships and responses to Internet crimes against children offenses through ongoing informational, administrative, and technological support to other State and local law enforcement agencies, as a means for such agencies to acquire the necessary knowledge, personnel, and specialized equipment to investigate and prosecute such offenses; 5) participate in nationally coordinated investigations in any case in which the Attorney General determines such participation to be necessary, as permitted by the available resources of such task force; 6) establish or adopt investigative and prosecution standards consistent with established norms, to which such task force shall comply; 7) investigate, and seek prosecution on tips related to Internet crimes against children, including tips from Operation Fairplay, the National Internet Crimes Against Children Data System, the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children's CyberTipline, ICAC task forces, and other Federal, State, and local agencies, with priority being given to investigate leads that indicate the possibility of identifying or rescuing child victims, including investigative leads that indicate a likelihood of seriousness of offense or dangerousness to the community; 8) develop procedures for handling seized evidence for ICAC task force lead agencies and affiliate agencies; 9) maintain reports required by OJJDP and other reports and records as determined by the Attorney General; and, 10) seek to comply with national standards regarding the investigation and prosecution of Internet crimes against children, as set forth by the Attorney General, to the extent such standards are consistent with the law of the State where the task force is located.
The project’s purpose is the utilization of provided resources to foster community awareness, conduct investigations, secure evidence, and identify and apprehend offenders who utilize technology in the commission of crimes against children. We have formed partnerships with other local law enforcement agencies and prosecutors in order to combat the problem of online child victimization and child pornography. The population to be served encompasses children, their parents / caregivers, teachers and related professionals that reside or work in the target area, the City of New York, N.Y.
The project’s goal is the reduction of child victims. Community outreach is paramount to achieving our goal and fulfilling the mission. We utilize informational presentations, which are focused on Internet safety practices, at schools and community-based organizations. We equip both the children and their caregivers with the information needed to both protect themselves and identify / report questionable behavior. Identifying and apprehending the individuals sought for the commission of these crimes poses unique challenges. While balancing both proactive and reactive investigative assignments in this office, we must maintain an educational curriculum that reflects and addresses the most up to date issues for our community members. As technology evolves, so does our need to understand its most intricate workings. Progress towards these goals is measured by the number of children and adults trained, number of investigations conducted, number of related arrests effected, size of related evidence forensically examined and by the number of agencies coordinated in the effort.
