How easy is it for sexual predators to chat with kids online? The answer may frighten you. Thursday we had Pitt County Sheriff's Department Chief Lee Moore pose as a 14-year-old girl in an Internet chat room looking for action. In a matter of minutes he had several responses, one from a person claiming to be a 13-year-old male from the United Kingdom. Moore says the danger is that the person responding to him could be anyone anywhere. And the next time it could be your child they're chatting with. That's why law enforcement officials are pushing a state bill that would make much easier to put Internet predators behind bars. The proposal would allow investigators to pose as teenagers under 16 and prosecute anyone looking to hurt a child. The new law would also require those prosecuted to give a DNA sample, and add their name and information to the state sex offender registry. Moore says regardless of new laws, parents should talk with their children and always be aware of what they are doing on the Internet.
