Federal prosecutors and a New York lawyer [James R. Marsh] are persuading courts to order anyone caught with illicit images to pay financial restitution to child victims. Marsh says he is not seeking restitution for the original crime of sexual assault of a child. His claims on Amy's behalf are based on the idea that those who possess images of his client's abuse are guilty of a current violation of her privacy rights. "This is an ongoing crime, an ongoing harm, that will never end," he says. "There is nothing that she can do, or I can do, or the US attorney can do, ...

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New York lawyer James R. Marsh, the victim's attorney and an expert on child abuse law, said Eginton's ruling is unlikely to cause a spike in claims for restitution. That is because, he said, the number of victims who have been identified from seized computer images is tiny - perhaps 200 children. Many of those victims, he said, are still children; they were photographed or videotaped when they were babies. Some victims may not be aware of their legal rights, Marsh said. In other cases, he said, parents may decide that children are better served by not going to court.

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