POLICE CITE NET THREAT TO KIDS.

Byline: Patrick McGreevy and Douglas Haberman Daily News Staff Writers

Warning that arrests for Internet-related crimes against children in Los Angeles are up 150 percent over last year, Police Chief Bernard Parks warned parents Wednesday to watch their youngsters' computer use more closely.

Because if they don't, pedophiles certainly will.

``Young people have been enticed to meet pedophiles, or they are sent a bus ticket,'' Parks said during a news conference. ``These are things we think come about from unsupervised activity.''

Parks said an ``explosion'' in the number of home computers has given pedophiles infinitely more opportunity to troll the Internet for new victims and trade photos.

So far this year, the LAPD unit that handles sex crimes against children says it has arrested 15 people for computer-related crimes involving minors - compared to six arrests last year - and is investigating 14 other reports.

Because of the anonymity of the Internet, police are unsure exactly how many pedophiles lurk in cyberspace, but they said detectives constantly are busy trying to outfox computer-savvy molesters.

``We get cases every day,'' said Detective Raul Galindo of the Los Angeles Police Department's Child Sexual Exploitation Unit. ``This is new, and this is more underground than anything else.''

The unit has five detectives that handle sex crimes against minors, the same as last year despite the growing problem. But none of them can devote time exclusively to Internet porn, said Detective Bill Dworin, head of the child sex crime unit.

``We need a computer nerd in here,'' Dworin said.

At the same time that many parents are caught unaware by the dangers of the Internet, the city also is grappling with how - and whether - to control online access in public libraries.

Library policy now places the responsibility for restricting children's Internet access on their parents and guardians. A June 9 memorandum from the City Attorney's Office recommends that if any revision is planned, it should be an interim policy to protect children from obscene materials without infringing the rights of adult library patrons. The City Council's Arts, Health and Humanities Committee is scheduled to revisit the issue Aug. 12.

New technology

Internet-related crime against children falls generally into several categories: the downloading, distribution and production of photographs and pornographic material, and the solicitation of minors through ``chat rooms'' and bulletin boards.

New technology has allowed pedophiles to scan pictures into computers at home and even take videotape and send it anywhere on the Internet.

``Now it's material that we have never seen before. These are children who are being molested now,'' Dworin said. ``These are children we are trying to identify.''

In one case, a 13-year-old Los Angeles girl was lured into meeting a man from San Diego to have sex, and she was molested while a video camera captured it, Dworin said.

Just last week, the LAPD arrested veteran rock guitarist Robert ``Waddy'' Wachtel and his wife, Annie, on suspicion of possessing child pornography. Police said they found illegal images on his computer.

``The victims were are dealing with often lack attention and affection at home,'' he said.

``We tell our children don't talk to strangers,'' Dworin said. ``We then give the child a computer and put it in their bedroom to be used as a baby-sitting tool and frequently parents have no idea who their children are contacting in the various chat rooms.''

Although the Internet spans the world, Dworin said detectives have found that many pedophiles and networks of them operate out of Los Angeles.

Crime and punishment 

In addition to laws against physical molestation of children, Dworin said it is illegal to use sexual language in computer conversations with children. Upon a second conviction of that misdemeanor law, the person must register as a sex offender, Dworin said.

Other crimes that have led to arrests by his unit include distribution of child pornography for commercial purposes and production of child pornography. The latter crime, if for private viewing, is a misdemeanor and could lead to one year in jail; if for commercial purposes, a conviction would draw a maximum sentence of eight years in prison.

Computer technology, however, also can be used to block children from viewing unacceptable material. But child advocates said that parents themselves are the best guardians.

The Internet can be a powerful learning tool but ``in order to keep it like it is, parents have got to keep kids away from the dangers,'' said Jayne Murphy Shapiro, founder and president of Granada Hills-based Kids Safe, an advocacy group on child safety education.

Educate your children to the dangers, set rules and impose discipline if they break them - just like for any other activity, said Shapiro.