Claire Ness, deputy attorney general, speaks during a committee hearing. (Michael Achterling/North Dakota Monitor)
(Michael Achterling – North Dakota Monitor) – Possessing a computer-generated image of child pornography would be punishable as a felony in North Dakota under a bill discussed Monday by state lawmakers.
House Bill 1386 adds images created by artificial intelligence to state law prohibiting the possession of child pornography.
Deputy Attorney General Claire Ness strongly urged members of the House Judiciary Committee to advance the bill.
“Computer-generated images and artificial intelligence have opened a new world for the cruel individuals who make, possess, or trade (child sexual abuse materials),” Ness said.
The bill would make possessing computer-generated child pornography a Class C felony.
The bill also proposes enhanced penalties for more egregious cases of child pornography, such as possessing 20 or more images, repeat offenses or cases involving explicit images of an infant or toddler.
Ness said offenses involving child pornography have escalated in North Dakota. The state Bureau of Criminal Investigation received over 1,500 tips from the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children each of the past two years, and that only represents some of the cases investigators look into, she said. The state received 585 such tips in 2020.
