Following the emergence of several reports on the creation of child pornography by artificial intelligence in California, Erik Nasarenko, the District Attorney of Ventura County, has advocated for a change to state law in order to safeguard children who are increasingly at risk from the misuse of this technology. Nasarenko initially received a tip last December about an individual who had digitally produced explicit images featuring an underage girl engaging in sexual acts with an adult male. However, due to existing loopholes in California's laws, he discovered that he could not bring charges in cases where the images of children were generated using AI. Last year, the U. S. National Center for Missing and Exploited Children reported receiving 4, 700 instances of AI-generated photos depicting child sexual exploitation. Some Los Angeles middle and high schools have even expelled students for using AI to create sexually inappropriate images of their peers. Over the past five months, Nasarenko's office has received six tips related to images portraying minors partaking in sexual activities. As incidents of AI-generated child pornography continue to increase, lawmakers and prosecutors in California believe it is imperative for the state to act in order to protect children and hold offenders accountable. Assembly Bill 1831, sponsored by Assemblymember Marc Berman (D-Menlo Park) and co-sponsored by Nasarenko, aims to make it illegal to possess, distribute, and create AI-generated sexually explicit images of children.

The bill would also cover images that depict children realistically but are not actual photographs. SAG-AFTRA and the California District Attorney's Association are also co-sponsoring the bill. During testimony at the Assembly Public Safety Committee, Berman stated, "With the rapid advancement of AI, this technology has been used to create highly realistic images of child sexual abuse which can be virtually indistinguishable from a real child. " The bill would allow teenagers to be charged in juvenile courts as well. On Tuesday, Kaylin Hayman, a survivor and advocate for victims from Ventura County who was a regular cast member on a Disney Channel show between the ages of 10 and 14, testified that her face from that time had been superimposed onto an adult body engaging in sexual acts. Hayman, now 16 years old, expressed her feelings of violation and disgust, knowing that grown individuals had seen her in such a horrific manner. She courageously shared, "While speaking about this topic is daunting, I know deep down I need to share my voice. I need to bring awareness and justice to those in my position. " The creator of the manipulated images was convicted in federal court. However, Nasarenko stressed that California lacks a corresponding statute that would have enabled him to prosecute the case locally. The bill successfully passed the Assembly Public Safety Committee with bipartisan support and now proceeds to the Privacy and Consumer Protection Committee.