Internet Crimes Against Child Task Force Grant continuation

Pursuant to Section 104 of the PROTECT Our Children Act of 2008, the ICAC Task Force 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, educator, prosecutors, law enforcement, and others concerned with Internet crimes against children; 4) develop multijurisdictional, multiagency responses and partnerships 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 resource of such task force; 6) establish or adopt investigative and prosecution standards consistent with 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 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; 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.

Using OJJDP funds, the Minnesota Department of Public Safety's Bureau of Criminal Apprehension provides support to the Minnesota Internet Crimes Against Children (MNICAC) Task Force, which is comprised of nearly 100 affiliate agencies and other non-affiliate agencies. The MNICAC Task Force's purpose is to identify, investigate, apprehend, and prosecute predatory offenders who use the internet as a means to target and victimize children for sexual purposes. MNICAC will enhance its detection, investigation, apprehension and prosecution of technology-facilitated sexual exploitation of children through basic and advanced training for investigators and forensic examiners. More specifically, the MNICAC Task Force will send investigators and prosecutors to training in the areas of: Investigative Techniques, Undercover Chat investigations, Peer-to-Peer investigations, as well as conducting training in the area of officer wellness (mental health training). In addition, the Minnesota ICAC will continue to increase their computer forensic capabilities by purchasing six (6) computer forensic workstations, as well as a variety of cell phone forensic analysis tools.

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The National Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Force Program, as established by the PROTECT Our Children Act of 2008, 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 resource 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 Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension (BCA) has been a partner with the Minnesota Crimes Against Children (MICAC) Task Force since 2006 and provides support to nearly 100 affiliate agencies and other non-affiliate agencies operating as the Minnesota ICAC. Minnesota currently has approximately 5.5 million residents and over 450 law enforcement agencies. The MICAC Task Force’s purpose is to identify, investigate, apprehend, and prosecute predatory offenders, who use the internet as a means to target and victimize children for sexual purposes. MICAC has the following goals: to identify and investigate sexual offenders, who are soliciting children on the Internet, to identify and investigate predatory offenders who are possessing, distributing, or manufacturing pornographic materials containing children, to expand forensic capability with affiliate agencies, and to provide Internet safety awareness throughout Minnesota.
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