District Attorney Held Teen Cyber Safety Event

Submitted by D.A. Gerry Leone's office.

Fostering healthy relationships offline and online was the focus of a day long conference held Thursday for school officials and law enforcement personnel hosted by the and the Middlesex Partnership for Youth, Inc.

More than 300 local school officials, social workers and law enforcement personnel attended SECURE XIV, an annual conference to address issues of health and safety for teens.

This year’s event, "Protecting and Empowering Digital Youth," highlighted healthy and unhealthy relationships and how those relationships are often played out online. District Attorney Gerry Leone spoke about healthy relationships, cyber bullying and sexting.

“Our children are growing up in a world where social media and online communication are becoming the prominent forms of social interaction,” Leone said. “We have a responsibility to teach our children to be good citizens, online and offline. Bad behavior, including bullying, whether it is on social media or through texting, lends to unhealthy relationships. Our goal is to foster healthy personal and educational environments, urging teens to engage in respectful, tolerant and supportive relationships in all aspects of their lives.”

Leone is the Chair of Middlesex Partnerships for Youth, Inc. (MPY), a nonprofit organization which provides prevention and intervention resources and training to Middlesex school districts and communities.