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EMU Professors Pushing For New Michigan Laws To Protect The Disabled From Online Predators

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New laws are needed to protect adults with disabilities from online abuse.  Here's WEMU's Heather Irvine with more.

Two Eastern Michigan University professors are advocating for new state laws to protect vunerable adults with disabilities against online predation. 

Christina Marsack-Topolewski and Annemarie Kelly presented two House bills (here and here) to deter abuse and hold abusers accountable.

Kelly says Michigan needs to close gaps in current laws.

"Our laws need to reflect that exploitation can and does occur online. Vunerable adults, this classification of people with severe intellectual and developmental disabilities or severe cognitive impairments. This legal classification of vunerable adults face the highest risk."

Michigan has laws in place to prevent in-person abuse against vunerable adults.  The proposed bills reflect that exploitation occurs online.

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— Heather Irvine is a writer/reporter for 89.1 WEMU News.  Contact her at 734.487.3363 or email her studio@wemu.org

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