THE DAILY COLLEGIAN Lawmakers reconsider sexting penalties By Brendan McNally COLLEGIAN STAFF WRITER State legislators are currently debating a bill that could stop underage Penn State students and other minors from being charged with a felony for sexting. Minors caught sending lewd pictures of themselves with their cell phones popularly known as sexting can currently be charged with possession or dis semination of child pornography, which could result in a permanent criminal record and registration as a sex offender, said state Rep. Seth Grove, R:York. However, Grove is sponsoring legislation making sexting a sec Police: DUI arrests above average statewide By Greg Galiffa COLLEGIAN STAFF WRITER New DUI statistics from the State College Police Department have some authorities expecting to break arrest records. There were 39 Driving Under the Influence (DUI) arrests in the month of January, which is above average, State College Police Department Lt. Dana Leonard said. "If you were to expand that over the entire year, we would have a record-brealdng DUI year, - he Program offers alternative options for diabetics By Erica L. Brecher COLLEGIAN STAFF WRITER 764.000 Pennsylvania adults with diabetes have a new option for managing their disease through a new Penn State pro gram. - . - Dining with Diabetes: A Program for Adults with Diabetes and their Families," was brought to the state last year through the Penn State Cooperative Extension, an educational net work that gives Pennsylvanians access to Penn State's resources and expertise. A four-week program that seeks to teach adults how to cook and select foods to better manage the ond-degree misdemeanor instead of a felony, meaning a conviction would not have the same life-alter ing impact it has now. The bill is scheduled for a vote in the House Judiciary Committee today. Grove said the bill would prop erly punish minors who sex while still allowing them to move on from their mistake. "It sends the message that these actions won't be tolerated, well charge you with it. but it won't ruin your life, - he said. Grove said the charge of a sec ond-degree misdemeanor is on par with a shoplifting charge, can be expunged from a criminal record and would not prevent minors from receiving scholar said. Leonard said those arrested including 10 Penn State stu dents had an average blood alcohol content (BAC) of .183 per cent, more than double the legal driving limit of .08 percent. He also said that of the 39 people arrested, 54 percent had BACs more than .16. with the highest at .436. But the numbers aren't only increasing in State College. DUI arrests are becoming more fre quent throughout Pennsylvania. said George Geisler. a Pennsylvania DUI Association Law Enforcement Services offi disease, Dining with Diabetes is offered in 30 counties so far. direc tor Jill Cox said. Three months after the pro gram's completion, participants have a check-up to track their health. Cox said check-ups have shown a drop in blood pressure. waist circumference and healthier blood sugar levels, which builds participants' self-esteem. "Many people with diabetes feel completely overwhelmed by the disease, so depression and dia betes often goes hand in hand," Cox said. "But we've seen an increase in self confidence about managing the disease, and they feel better about themselves." Mary Ehret, a registered dieti- ships or serving in the military later in life. Penn State student Alan Mcßride (junior-telecommunica tions) thinks the new legislation would take a step in the right direction. "It's still not a smart thing to do." he said. "But I don't think that [minors] should be punished and labeled a sex offender for just sending one picture of themselves to their significant other" Grove said there is no definition of sexting in the Pennsylvania criminal code, which means dis trict attorneys have had the free dom to do everything from not charging minors at all to charging them with felonies under child pornography laws. cer. In fact, there were 56,446 DUI arrests in 2008 statewide, he said. In 2007, there were about 53,000. State College's current record is 450 arrests, set several years ago. Geisler credits the increase of arrests to the amount of training officers receive throughout the state, including the national pro gram Advanced Roadside Impaired Driving Enforcement (ARIDE), which is designed to prepare officers to handle DUI arrests in a more effective man ner. The increase in arrests has been noticed by local organi- cian who leads the program in Luzerne County said a lot of par ticipants didn't know the basics of food selection for people with dia betes. She teaches them to make better choices based on food labels, fiber content, heart-healthy oils and carbohydrates. She also offers recipe tasting, featuring foods made without salt or with artificial sweeteners. "They're really appreciative of getting to test diabetes-friendly recipes. It makes a difference," Ehret said. "Two people have told me they've taken salt shakers off their tables, and another person told me he's going to bake a cake with whole-grain flour" Dining with Diabetes originated "It sends the message that these actions wont be tolerated, we'll charge you with it, but it won't ruin your life." What's more, he said, the cur- Rep. Kerry Benninghoff. B rent law has failed to keep up with Centre, thinks the legislation is changing technology. something lawmakers should seri "The big problem is that when ously consider implementing. these child predator laws came - A lot of sills things people do out, cell phones didn't have cam- when they're young is not done to eras," Grove said. "Technology be malicious." he said. - Someone surpassed the laws we have." shouldn't have to pay the rest of He said the bill has received their life for something like bipartisan support and expects it that." will pass the Judiciary Committee. e bwmsl47Cg?psu.edu zations in the region as well. "It's surprising that the num bers are getting higher." said Evelyn McKee, community action team leader for Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD). "I've seen it happening over the past few years." McKee, who works at the Centre-Clinton chapter of MADD. said she is constantly speaking with first-time DUI offenders in an attempt to stop future incidents. She also visits schools and prisons to educate about the dangerous effects of driving drunk. at West Virginia University about a decade ago. Since then. it has been offered in many states through funding from the U.S. Department of Agriculture and state departments of health, said Cox. The program was first offered in Pennsylvania last March as a pilot program and only included eight counties. Bventy-two more coun ties have joined since then. Researchers looked at hospital ization and amputation statistics to determine which counties need ed the program the most, also tak ing a look at kidney disease and deaths related to diabetes. Demographics including education level and unemploy- TUESDAY, FEB. 9, 2010 Rep. Seth Grove For Leonard and the local police. spreading education means publicizing more of these numbers and discouraging any potential drunken drivers from getting behind the wheel. "‘Ve have an enormous amount of people out there driving drunk. - he said. They need to find an alternative. If we advertise how many people are getting arrested. it would only create a deterrent for those who choose to drink and rt, gmgso4l@psu.edu 230 million 24 million 764,000 ment were also considered It's in its early stages since many counties are just starting their programs. but the potential is great, - Cox said. To e-mail reporter: elbsl36@psu.edu
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