And just like that, with Cooper’s help a 24 year old who tricks a 14 year old into having sex no longer has to register as a sex offender.

Jim Cooper’s vote in support for SB 145 helped change State law to make it easier for adults to manipulate young children into having sex.

How do human traffickers and sexual predators target their child victims? It starts with tricking the child into believing the adult sex offenders really care about the child and will take care of them. Through a pattern of manipulation and grooming, the sex offender lowers the child fears and coaxes them into having sex.

Then it is another adult, and another adult, because the child doesn’t realize they are being trafficked.

According to SB 145, “This bill would exempt from mandatory registration under the act a person convicted of certain offenses involving minors if the person is not more than 10 years older than the minor and if that offense is the only one requiring the person to register.”