WEBVTT
1
00:00:00.320 --> 00:00:00.920
Hey, everyone.
2
00:00:00.960 --> 00:00:05.030
Welcome back. And today I have an esteemed guest on
3
00:00:05.070 --> 00:00:07.849
the show. We are going to talk about the ICAC,
4
00:00:07.889 --> 00:00:12.070
that is Internet Crimes Against Children. This gentleman I have
5
00:00:12.109 --> 00:00:16.089
sitting across from me has worked for a long time
6
00:00:16.129 --> 00:00:19.969
with the Livingston-Barris Sheriff's Office, Captain Calvin Bowden. First of all,
7
00:00:20.030 --> 00:00:20.809
welcome to the show.
8
00:00:21.010 --> 00:00:22.140
Thank you, Jim. Appreciate it.
9
00:00:22.809 --> 00:00:27.350
So we're going to talk about internet crimes against children today,
10
00:00:27.429 --> 00:00:31.010
something you're very involved with. But before we get into it,
11
00:00:31.190 --> 00:00:34.390
what it is, what it does, and what y'all.
12
00:00:34.149 --> 00:00:37.520
Do specifically with that collaboration, I.
13
00:00:37.950 --> 00:00:39.600
Want to talk a little bit about you. How long
14
00:00:39.640 --> 00:00:41.399
have you been with the Sheriff's Department?
15
00:00:41.600 --> 00:00:44.979
I've been at the Livingston Parish Sheriff's Office for 28 years.
16
00:00:44.979 --> 00:00:47.539
28 years. And how did you start off there?
17
00:00:47.979 --> 00:00:49.740
So I started off in corrections.
18
00:00:49.939 --> 00:00:50.560
Yeah.
19
00:00:50.780 --> 00:00:54.359
Worked there just probably about six months and then went
20
00:00:54.439 --> 00:00:59.810
to uniform patrol. Stayed in uniform patrol for a while.
21
00:00:59.909 --> 00:01:01.729
Then I became a D.A.R.E. officer.
22
00:01:01.750 --> 00:01:02.229
Yeah.
23
00:01:02.590 --> 00:01:03.969
Oh, really? I didn't know that.
24
00:01:03.990 --> 00:01:08.209
Interesting. I taught D.A.R.E. for a couple years. How did
25
00:01:08.230 --> 00:01:10.530
you like that? I liked it. Yeah. I liked it.
26
00:01:11.340 --> 00:01:14.480
You know, making a difference in them young children's lives.
27
00:01:14.659 --> 00:01:15.359
Oh, yeah.
28
00:01:16.040 --> 00:01:21.420
It was inspiring. Yeah. And then in 2005, I went
29
00:01:21.500 --> 00:01:25.939
to criminal investigations, and I've been in criminal investigations ever since.
30
00:01:26.099 --> 00:01:26.939
Yeah, yeah.
31
00:01:27.239 --> 00:01:31.439
And, of course, through 28 years, I find, and that's
32
00:01:31.780 --> 00:01:35.260
very unique to your experiences, you've seen a lot of
33
00:01:35.359 --> 00:01:37.159
changes in technology.
34
00:01:37.500 --> 00:01:38.500
A lot, yes.
35
00:01:38.739 --> 00:01:39.959
I can only imagine.
36
00:01:40.040 --> 00:01:43.760
I mean, 28 years ago, I guess the Internet existed,
37
00:01:43.859 --> 00:01:45.810
but it barely existed at that point.
38
00:01:45.890 --> 00:01:46.689
Right. Yeah.
39
00:01:47.370 --> 00:01:53.829
And now it is pretty much a playground for business
40
00:01:54.329 --> 00:01:55.769
and for bad actors.
41
00:01:55.909 --> 00:01:56.090
Yes.
42
00:01:56.430 --> 00:01:57.159
A lot of times.
43
00:01:57.230 --> 00:02:01.180
And I guess that would lead us into ICAC. And
44
00:02:01.760 --> 00:02:04.959
I want to maybe, if you could, explain to people
45
00:02:05.140 --> 00:02:08.060
what ICAC is and how it started.
46
00:02:08.659 --> 00:02:14.870
So Internet Crimes Against Children is a task force. It is...
47
00:02:15.990 --> 00:02:19.509
started with the, uh, in Louisiana started, uh, with the, uh,
48
00:02:19.629 --> 00:02:24.960
attorney general's office. Yeah. Um, back before we got involved
49
00:02:25.020 --> 00:02:26.879
in it two and a half years ago, there were
50
00:02:27.020 --> 00:02:32.000
probably less than 10, uh, agencies that were, were involved
51
00:02:32.199 --> 00:02:39.000
in now, uh, through the hard work of, uh, attorney general, uh,
52
00:02:39.030 --> 00:02:45.759
Liz Merrill's team, all 64 parishes have ICAC, uh, Task
53
00:02:45.800 --> 00:02:49.800
Force that we all work together, you know, moving in
54
00:02:49.819 --> 00:02:53.039
the same direction to protect not only the kids in
55
00:02:53.099 --> 00:02:56.900
our parish, but the kids in our whole state. Wow.
56
00:02:57.120 --> 00:03:02.210
And what I find interesting about ICAC is that there's
57
00:03:02.530 --> 00:03:07.490
no limitations even relative to states. ICAC exists in other states,
58
00:03:07.610 --> 00:03:11.169
which I would imagine helps you folks if you're dealing
59
00:03:11.229 --> 00:03:15.680
with someone who maybe came from another state here. uh,
60
00:03:15.750 --> 00:03:19.599
to commit a crime, you know, and you mentioned collaboration
61
00:03:19.680 --> 00:03:22.659
and how there was only, you know, a limited number
62
00:03:22.680 --> 00:03:24.099
of agencies when it started.
63
00:03:24.199 --> 00:03:26.000
Now it's a hundred percent filled.
64
00:03:26.300 --> 00:03:26.539
Right.
65
00:03:26.759 --> 00:03:30.199
Amazing progress on that. But it also speaks to me
66
00:03:30.340 --> 00:03:33.479
as a, I guess, a citizen that obviously it's working
67
00:03:33.699 --> 00:03:37.259
and these, in the sheriffs and, uh, are seeing it
68
00:03:37.319 --> 00:03:39.560
working and they want to get involved in that. Right.
69
00:03:39.689 --> 00:03:45.919
Yes. Yes. So, uh, whenever you have, uh, All these
70
00:03:46.180 --> 00:03:49.539
agencies that are involved and have these task force, whenever
71
00:03:49.680 --> 00:03:54.020
your investigation reaches these different parishes or these different states,
72
00:03:54.500 --> 00:03:57.110
you have a point of contact that you can reach
73
00:03:57.270 --> 00:04:00.409
out to and they can help you and assist you
74
00:04:00.430 --> 00:04:03.629
in an investigation. And they do the same investigations you do.
75
00:04:03.710 --> 00:04:07.560
So they know firsthand what they need to do, what
76
00:04:07.599 --> 00:04:10.580
they need to ask. what type of evidence they need
77
00:04:10.599 --> 00:04:14.289
to seize. And it just, it makes everything run smoothly.
78
00:04:14.629 --> 00:04:14.930
Wow.
79
00:04:15.830 --> 00:04:18.470
And I want to, I want to talk a little
80
00:04:18.509 --> 00:04:25.149
bit to or about the subject of parental supervision over
81
00:04:25.250 --> 00:04:28.800
kids and, and what parents can do because a lot
82
00:04:28.839 --> 00:04:31.800
of these parents grew up in a generation where the
83
00:04:31.879 --> 00:04:32.500
internet was.
84
00:04:33.220 --> 00:04:35.459
Was in its infancy.
85
00:04:35.480 --> 00:04:38.519
I mean, you didn't have, matter of fact, I had
86
00:04:38.579 --> 00:04:42.550
flip phones, and before flip phones, I hadâ remember the Nextels? Oh, yeah.
87
00:04:43.009 --> 00:04:45.569
I had a Nextel pager. I used to roll around
88
00:04:45.589 --> 00:04:47.310
with a pager and stop at pay phones.
89
00:04:47.329 --> 00:04:50.769
So that generation ofâ you know, our generation of people,
90
00:04:52.290 --> 00:04:55.990
unless you're in a field like mine or yours, for example,
91
00:04:56.029 --> 00:04:59.050
where you're around computers every day, you may not understand
92
00:04:59.970 --> 00:05:01.269
the risk.
93
00:05:00.970 --> 00:05:05.490
Involved in handing children a cell phone. There's some benefits
94
00:05:05.550 --> 00:05:05.910
to that.
95
00:05:05.990 --> 00:05:09.310
You canâ You can obviously call your child anytime there's
96
00:05:09.360 --> 00:05:11.810
a worry about something to make sure they're okay, but
97
00:05:11.860 --> 00:05:14.600
there's some risk. And that's what I really want to
98
00:05:14.660 --> 00:05:18.839
talk about today. Let's talk about the risk that you
99
00:05:18.980 --> 00:05:22.500
see with these bad actors and how they're preying on
100
00:05:22.540 --> 00:05:23.079
these children.
101
00:05:23.800 --> 00:05:28.399
And, you know, as a parent, you want to give
102
00:05:29.800 --> 00:05:35.620
your child access to further their education and learn things
103
00:05:35.779 --> 00:05:41.810
and you know, a digital device can help in that, right? Yeah.
104
00:05:42.269 --> 00:05:48.449
But also these predators, these bad actors, that's what they're
105
00:05:48.550 --> 00:05:52.829
using as well. Yeah. So, you know, if our kids
106
00:05:52.930 --> 00:05:57.040
have any type of device that reaches the outside world
107
00:05:57.120 --> 00:06:01.379
on the Internet, those predators are there as well. Yeah.
108
00:06:01.839 --> 00:06:02.920
That's a scary thought.
109
00:06:03.100 --> 00:06:04.759
Yes, it is. Yeah.
110
00:06:05.319 --> 00:06:09.009
And, and, uh, they, obviously these predators don't think like
111
00:06:09.050 --> 00:06:11.970
you and I do. And, uh, you know, they have
112
00:06:12.069 --> 00:06:15.610
one goal in mind and, and they'll say anything to
113
00:06:15.870 --> 00:06:20.649
achieve that goal. Um, what, how are they getting in
114
00:06:20.730 --> 00:06:23.189
touch with these children? I mean, they're not reaching out
115
00:06:23.449 --> 00:06:25.490
typically and calling them on the telephone.
116
00:06:26.009 --> 00:06:29.939
No. So if, if say the, the, the kid has
117
00:06:29.980 --> 00:06:33.980
a Facebook, they are instant message. The, uh, the, the
118
00:06:34.019 --> 00:06:39.019
child on Facebook. And these predators, they do their homework, okay?
119
00:06:40.379 --> 00:06:44.019
That's why whenever we go to these schools and present
120
00:06:44.199 --> 00:06:50.110
about safety, I caution parents about putting personal information about
121
00:06:50.149 --> 00:06:52.290
the kids and things that are going on in their
122
00:06:52.329 --> 00:06:56.370
lives on the Internet. For example, if you have a
123
00:06:56.410 --> 00:07:00.410
kid that is going through a situation where they lost
124
00:07:00.470 --> 00:07:03.310
a loved one or something and it's posted on the Internet,
125
00:07:04.670 --> 00:07:09.759
then they're going through a stage of grievance in their
126
00:07:09.800 --> 00:07:13.500
life and that predator sees that and they're going to
127
00:07:13.600 --> 00:07:16.600
step in and try to fill any void that that
128
00:07:16.660 --> 00:07:19.879
kid has in their life. These predators, whenever they reach out,
129
00:07:20.019 --> 00:07:27.230
they will find what these kids are involved in and
130
00:07:27.629 --> 00:07:32.629
they will fill that void and make it where they
131
00:07:32.910 --> 00:07:38.209
are friending this person the these these kids right yeah
132
00:07:38.529 --> 00:07:42.839
and and that's that's where it all starts.
133
00:07:42.860 --> 00:07:46.160
Yeah they look it seems like they're they're looking for
134
00:07:46.220 --> 00:07:48.920
an end right any way they can find it right
135
00:07:48.959 --> 00:07:52.439
and that end becomes like uh you know i haven't
136
00:07:52.480 --> 00:07:55.699
thought about that but yeah you you're posting something innocent
137
00:07:56.339 --> 00:07:59.839
or that you would assume was relatively innocent you got
138
00:07:59.860 --> 00:08:02.600
to be real careful uh Almost like think on the
139
00:08:02.660 --> 00:08:05.060
other side of that, how could somebody take advantage of
140
00:08:05.120 --> 00:08:06.379
this before you post it?
141
00:08:06.459 --> 00:08:06.720
Right.
142
00:08:07.160 --> 00:08:09.860
And that's something most parents, you know, it just doesn't
143
00:08:09.899 --> 00:08:10.560
enter their mind.
144
00:08:10.759 --> 00:08:12.730
Yeah, because whenever theyâ You would never think somebody would
145
00:08:12.759 --> 00:08:17.610
take advantage of that. Whenever these parents post this or
146
00:08:17.649 --> 00:08:20.370
they have their kids post stuff, it's very innocent.
147
00:08:20.689 --> 00:08:20.870
Yeah.
148
00:08:20.910 --> 00:08:25.329
But on the flip side, these predators are looking for that,
149
00:08:25.709 --> 00:08:28.129
and they're trying to fill any void that these kids
150
00:08:28.170 --> 00:08:31.819
have in their life to makeâ They're self-relevant, right?
151
00:08:31.860 --> 00:08:32.080
Yeah.
152
00:08:32.879 --> 00:08:33.700
I know that.
153
00:08:35.299 --> 00:08:41.090
Our Attorney General has created an extreme focus on Roblox
154
00:08:41.169 --> 00:08:44.529
in particular. Of course, there are other applications out there
155
00:08:45.490 --> 00:08:49.309
as well. But Roblox in particular, because it is an
156
00:08:49.509 --> 00:08:54.100
application that was designed for children, for children to play.
157
00:08:54.179 --> 00:08:57.139
And everybody out there is familiar, I'm sure, with Roblox.
158
00:08:57.679 --> 00:09:00.409
but you may not be familiar with the messaging features
159
00:09:00.710 --> 00:09:04.450
on Roblox. And I think that has become, let's talk
160
00:09:04.490 --> 00:09:09.269
about that for a minute. And you can explain to
161
00:09:09.309 --> 00:09:13.639
people how they're reaching out on these applications. And even
162
00:09:13.779 --> 00:09:16.080
outside of like a Facebook where you know there's a
163
00:09:16.120 --> 00:09:19.820
messaging system, how they're reaching out on these applications that
164
00:09:19.840 --> 00:09:22.519
you may not realize have communication systems.
165
00:09:22.779 --> 00:09:27.279
Right. And that's a good point for... Nowadays, whenever we
166
00:09:27.320 --> 00:09:31.919
do search warrants on investigations and stuff like that, before
167
00:09:32.139 --> 00:09:35.570
you would want the digital devices, the phones, the computers.
168
00:09:36.649 --> 00:09:39.129
Now you have to go for the phones, the computers,
169
00:09:39.429 --> 00:09:44.409
the gaming devices, the Xboxes, the PlayStations, and stuff like
170
00:09:44.429 --> 00:09:51.679
that because those game components do reach out to the Internet.
171
00:09:52.179 --> 00:09:55.799
And those games that are played on those devices, Yeah.
172
00:09:56.320 --> 00:10:02.580
They have messaging, uh, capabilities and predators are there as well. Yeah.
173
00:10:02.639 --> 00:10:05.480
Just like on, on Roblox. Yeah. Yeah.
174
00:10:05.580 --> 00:10:08.480
And I, I know Roblox is the one that makes
175
00:10:08.580 --> 00:10:12.840
all the news in Snapchats, things, uh, things of that nature.
176
00:10:12.899 --> 00:10:18.230
But I would probably say most every application, uh, out
177
00:10:18.269 --> 00:10:21.649
there has some sort of messaging capability to it now,
178
00:10:21.769 --> 00:10:27.830
which is scary. Right. What can a parent do to,
179
00:10:28.789 --> 00:10:32.460
you know, what would you advise to stay on top
180
00:10:32.500 --> 00:10:36.120
of this and just ensure that something is not going
181
00:10:36.379 --> 00:10:38.960
on that is out of the ordinary with their children?
182
00:10:39.299 --> 00:10:42.460
Right. Just like Sheriff Jason Hart always says, be in
183
00:10:42.500 --> 00:10:45.679
your kid's business, right? Yes. Be in your kid's business
184
00:10:45.759 --> 00:10:46.299
as a parent.
185
00:10:46.320 --> 00:10:47.039
Right.
186
00:10:48.009 --> 00:10:54.360
But do integrity checks on your kids' devices. Let the
187
00:10:54.399 --> 00:10:58.220
kids know that at any point that you as a
188
00:10:58.259 --> 00:11:01.639
parent can ask for that device and do an integrity
189
00:11:01.679 --> 00:11:04.100
check and see what they're looking at. Scroll through the
190
00:11:04.139 --> 00:11:09.529
messages and so forth like that. And check the Internet history.
191
00:11:09.950 --> 00:11:13.610
If the Internet history is deleted, that's a red flag.
192
00:11:13.950 --> 00:11:17.769
they're probably looking at something that they probably shouldn't be
193
00:11:17.929 --> 00:11:19.250
because why would you delete it?
194
00:11:19.389 --> 00:11:19.669
Right.
195
00:11:19.889 --> 00:11:22.759
Right. Yeah. So that's, that's one thing, but just do
196
00:11:22.820 --> 00:11:27.580
integrity checks on the phones and, uh, you know, a good,
197
00:11:28.360 --> 00:11:31.840
a good thing to do is, you know, have boundaries
198
00:11:31.919 --> 00:11:36.299
for as times and places that they can use the phones. Yeah.
199
00:11:36.879 --> 00:11:41.840
You know, because a lot of times these, uh, these predators, uh,
200
00:11:42.200 --> 00:11:46.440
They're taking advantage of these children. And what we see
201
00:11:46.700 --> 00:11:50.809
is it's usually in the bedrooms and the bathrooms. Yeah. Yeah.
202
00:11:51.269 --> 00:11:52.110
That's a great point.
203
00:11:52.889 --> 00:11:58.429
You know, and Calvin, it's an uncomfortable conversation to have
204
00:11:58.470 --> 00:12:01.750
with your kids that predators exist and predators are out there.
205
00:12:01.840 --> 00:12:04.919
And I had this conversation, you know, with my girls.
206
00:12:05.139 --> 00:12:05.399
Right.
207
00:12:05.440 --> 00:12:07.200
When they were of the age.
208
00:12:07.399 --> 00:12:08.440
And, you know, it's weird.
209
00:12:08.990 --> 00:12:10.830
As a matter of fact, now you can almost say
210
00:12:10.970 --> 00:12:13.330
of the age because it's all ages you've got to
211
00:12:13.370 --> 00:12:16.470
watch out for. But I did have a conversation with
212
00:12:16.509 --> 00:12:19.169
them at one point that, hey, there's people out there
213
00:12:19.230 --> 00:12:21.610
that will lie to you and say they're 12 when
214
00:12:21.629 --> 00:12:22.389
they're 24.
215
00:12:22.389 --> 00:12:23.980
Oh, absolutely.
216
00:12:24.220 --> 00:12:27.080
And that was kind of a tough conversation to have
217
00:12:27.120 --> 00:12:29.720
for a dad. I remember my parents sitting me down
218
00:12:29.799 --> 00:12:31.799
and going to tell me about the birds and the bees.
219
00:12:31.879 --> 00:12:33.600
And I'm like, I already know about the birds and
220
00:12:33.620 --> 00:12:38.620
the bees. I don't want to have this conversation. I
221
00:12:38.659 --> 00:12:39.820
distinctly remember that.
222
00:12:41.399 --> 00:12:45.610
But for me, it was very important to sit down
223
00:12:45.850 --> 00:12:49.330
and have that conversation, no matter how uncomfortable it was,
224
00:12:49.409 --> 00:12:52.769
that there are people out there that have nothing but
225
00:12:52.809 --> 00:12:57.120
the worst intentions of Uh, and it was primarily because, uh,
226
00:12:57.679 --> 00:13:00.009
you know, at that time I was, I was covering
227
00:13:00.090 --> 00:13:03.919
crime on a, on a weekly news show. And, and, uh,
228
00:13:04.090 --> 00:13:06.629
it was something that I, I lived in that world,
229
00:13:06.769 --> 00:13:09.570
you know, where I saw these horrible things happening and,
230
00:13:09.789 --> 00:13:12.460
and I knew how important it was, but a lot
231
00:13:12.480 --> 00:13:15.580
of people, they, you know, understandably want to shy away
232
00:13:15.620 --> 00:13:17.679
from that. And I, you know, nobody ever wants to
233
00:13:17.720 --> 00:13:20.759
have that conversation. How important is that conversation?
234
00:13:20.820 --> 00:13:26.090
That conversation is very important. Um, Like I tell all
235
00:13:26.149 --> 00:13:34.669
the parents whenever we do these informational talks, I stress
236
00:13:34.720 --> 00:13:37.500
to them that they should have the conversation with their
237
00:13:37.539 --> 00:13:42.860
kids and their kids should feel comfortable coming to them.
238
00:13:43.460 --> 00:13:46.809
That's a great point. Because there are so many times
239
00:13:46.970 --> 00:13:54.960
that we work cases where the child makes a bad decision,
240
00:13:55.000 --> 00:13:56.860
which children are going to make bad decisions as part
241
00:13:56.879 --> 00:13:57.419
of growing up.
242
00:13:57.519 --> 00:13:57.879
I did.
243
00:13:58.019 --> 00:13:58.240
Right?