Child Pornography and AI: A Serious Crime in PA

Artificial intelligence increasingly impacts how people navigate the world. From research to brainstorming, AI is transforming day-to-day activities at an unmatched pace. Just because you can ask ChatGPT anything doesn’t mean you should. In fact, some uses of AI are criminal. Recently, a Gettysburg man is alleged to have repeatedly used AI to generate child sex images.

It’s not unreasonable to think that this PA man’s use of AI, however disturbing, was victimless. Using AI was a way to avoid involving real children. Regardless, he was arrested on felony charges with bail set at $350,000. His life will never be the same. If you’ve been accused of an AI crime in PA, you need immediate legal help from the LLF Law Firm. Contact us online or call 888-535-3686 today.

The Legal Trouble with Artificial Intelligence

The pace at which AI use has grown is unparalleled, but Pennsylvania legislators have enacted certain laws in an attempt to keep up. In 2024, Senate Bill 1213 criminalized child sexual abuse images that are artificially generated. This includes material that is totally generated by AI, even though no children were involved in the activities. PA sex crimes are extremely tough to defend, and you can’t do it on your own.

Child abuse images aren’t the only type of outlawed, AI-generated content in PA. Now, AI can be used to commit certain acts of forgery. Forgery is already against the law in PA, and now its definition has been expanded by Senate Bill 649, which was signed into law in mid-2025. This law makes deepfakes a crime. It further prohibits using the AI-generated voice of another for the purpose of deceit. This law makes Deep Fakes and similarly produced content a third-degree felony in Pennsylvania.

Defending Yourself from AI-Related Prosecutions

AI laws are constantly changing, and the everyday citizen isn’t tracking what these changes mean to their everyday lives. No one seems to fully understand what artificial intelligence is capable of or how humans should interact with it. It’s a slippery slope, and there’s no real clarity on the horizon.

If you’re charged with violating an AI-related law, call the Criminal Defense Team at the LLF Law Firm immediately. It’s common to misunderstand the seriousness of AI-related crimes because the actions often seem to be victimless. In child image cases, no child is harmed. In fact, one might argue, using AI was the most appropriate behavior given the circumstances. Pennsylvania law doesn’t care, and a felony charge is about as serious as it gets. You could lose your job, your house, your family, and more. The sooner you reach out to the LLF Law Firm, the better your chances of mitigating the damage are.

Artificial intelligence and the future of related criminal laws in Pennsylvania are uncertain, but the dedicated and vastly experienced Criminal Defense Team at the LLF Law Firm is here to help. Contact us online or call 888-535-3686 today.