Groom MP announces new bill to target teen crims who post their exploits online

The call has gone out for social media giants like Facebook and Instragram to treat teen crime videos with same the severity as revenge porn and child exploitation material.

Groom MP Garth Hamilton announced a private members bill that would expand the E-Safety Commission’s powers to take down videos glorifying youth crime.

The brazen trend of teen criminals posting their offences online could soon be a thing of the past with Groom MP Garth aiming to beef-up the E-Safety Commission’s powers to have these videos scrubbed from social media.

Mr Hamilton announced on Thursday he would place the Breaking Online Notoriety bill before federal parliament when it resumes in March.

“This crime wave has affected people in a lot of different ways but one of things that is regularly raised with me is that people are affected by the perpetrators posting their acts online,” he said.

“It adds to the feelings from victims that these people can get away with it.”

The E-Safety Commission already has powers to compel social media giants like Facebook and Instragram to take down media that constitutes online abuse.

Mr Hamilton’s private members bill would expand the definition of this online abuse to include video of home invasion, car theft and assault.

He said the commission has had great success in removing offensive material in the past and he hoped the Federal Government would back his bill.

“What we are seeing with these offenders is that the social credit from posting this material is part of the incentive, many of these crimes are not committed for monetary rewards” Mr Hamilton said.

“They are committing them to show off for their friends.”