United States v. Taylor, No. 10-2715 (7th Cir. 2011)
Annotate this CaseA police officer identified herself as a 13-year-old girl in an online chatroom. The defendant made sexual suggestions, masturbated in front of a webcam, and invited the "girl" to masturbate. The defendant was convicted of attempting to induce sexual activity by a minor (18 U.S.C. 2422), using Indiana statutory definitions of sexual activity that refer to fondling oneself in the presence of a person less than 14 years old with intent to arouse sexual desire. The Seventh Circuit reversed and ordered acquittal. The federal law definition of "sexual act" refers to touching; the term is treated as synonymous with "sexual activity" in the federal code. The court acknowledged that the federal law encompasses viewing child pornography, which does not involve touching, but stated that ambiguity must be resolved in favor of the defendant and noted that the defendant is subject to prosecution under state law.
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