Corruption of Minors: The Offense of Art. 189 CP (2026)

Corruption of minors, in its strictest criminal sense, groups together the conducts of sexual exploitation of minors through imagery: the use of children and adolescents in pornographic shows or material and the trafficking, distribution or possession of such material. It is typified in Article 189 of the Criminal Code (CP). As criminal defense lawyers in corruption of minors, we explain, with the utmost sobriety, what Art. 189 CP punishes, its aggravated forms, the distinction from the other figures in the chapter and the keys to a rigorous defense.

What Art. 189 CP Punishes

Art. 189 CP protects the sexual indemnity of minors and of persons with disabilities in need of special protection against their instrumentalization for pornographic purposes. The protected interest is the proper development of the minor's sexuality, which the law shields regardless of any apparent consent.

Art. 189.1 CP punishes, with one to five years in prison, two broad blocks of conduct:

• Use of the minor (Art. 189.1.a): recruiting or using minors or persons with disabilities in need of special protection for purposes of, or in, exhibitionist or pornographic shows, whether public or private, or to produce any kind of pornographic material, as well as financing those activities or profiting from them.
• Trafficking and possession of material (Art. 189.1.b): producing, selling, distributing, exhibiting, offering or facilitating the production, sale, distribution or exhibition, by any means, of child pornography or material in whose production persons with disabilities in need of special protection have been used, or possessing it for those purposes, even if the material originated abroad or its origin is unknown.

The provision itself defines child pornography with a broad concept: visual material representing a minor (or a person with a disability in need of special protection) engaged in sexually explicit conduct, real or simulated; the representation of their sexual organs for primarily sexual purposes; material in which someone who appears to be a minor is depicted; and realistic images of a minor in that context. This breadth explains why the offense also reaches technologically generated or manipulated material.

The Conduct and Its Forms

Art. 189 CP grades the criminal response according to the conduct and the circumstances:

Conduct	Penalties
Use / production / distribution / possession for distribution (189.1)	One to five years in prison.
Aggravated form (189.2)	Five to nine years in prison.
Knowingly attending shows involving minors (189.4)	Six months to two years in prison.
Acquisition or possession for personal use; knowing access (189.5)	Three months to one year in prison or a fine of six months to two years.
Failure to prevent continuation by the guardian (189.6)	Three to six months in prison or a fine of six to twelve months.

In addition, Art. 189.3 CP raises the penalty by one degree where the use of the minor under Art. 189.1.a) is committed with violence or intimidation. The exact classification of the conduct is decisive, given the enormous difference in penalties between mere possession for personal use and production or distribution.

The Aggravating Circumstances of Art. 189.2 CP

Art. 189.2 CP raises the penalty to five to nine years where, among others, one of these circumstances concurs:

• Where a child under sixteen is used.
• Where the acts are particularly degrading or demeaning, or physical or sexual violence is used to obtain the material, or scenes of violence are depicted.
• Where the victim is in a situation of special vulnerability by reason of illness, disability or any other circumstance.
• Where the life or health of the victim is endangered, intentionally or through gross negligence.
• Where the material is of notable importance.
• Where the perpetrator belongs to an organization or group dedicated to such activities.
• Where the perpetrator is an ascendant, guardian, curator, custodian, teacher or other person in charge of the minor, lives with them, or has abused a recognized position of trust or authority.
• Where the aggravating circumstance of recidivism concurs.

Whether or not these circumstances concur, and their correct appraisal, is one of the central focuses of the defense, because it marks the leap in penalty.

Distinction from the Other Figures in the Chapter

Art. 189 CP coexists with other sexual offenses against minors, and distinguishing them is essential for a correct classification:

• Sexual assault on minors (Art. 181 CP): where the perpetrator carries out acts of a sexual nature with a child under sixteen. This is the figure carrying the greatest reproach (with penalties that, in its forms involving penetration and aggravations, are very high).
• Corruption by exposure or inducement (Art. 182 CP): where, for sexual purposes, the minor is induced to take part in sexual behavior or is made to witness acts of a sexual nature, without the perpetrator carrying them out with the minor.
• Technological contact — grooming (Art. 183 CP): contacting a child under sixteen through the internet, telephone or other technology and proposing a meeting in order to commit a sexual offense, with material acts of approach; or luring them into providing or showing pornographic material.
• Proximity clause (Art. 183 bis CP): the free consent of a minor under sixteen may exclude criminal liability for the offenses in the chapter where the perpetrator is a person close to the minor in age and degree of physical and psychological development or maturity, unless the circumstances of Art. 178.2 CP concur.

It should be stressed that this proximity clause does not operate in the cases of Art. 189 CP where there is use in pornography or exploitation through imagery: child pornography is not legitimized by closeness in age.

Evidence and the Forensic Computer Report

In Art. 189 CP proceedings the evidence is usually technological in nature, and its correct collection and custody is decisive:

• Authorship and control of the device: identifying who had effective access to the equipment, the Wi-Fi network or the accounts, in cases of shared devices or uncontrolled access.
• Knowledge and intent regarding possession: distinguishing conscious possession from material downloaded automatically, stored in cache or temporary memory, received without being requested or not retained.
• Chain of custody of the digital evidence: integrity of the forensic images, verification hashes, traceability of the copies and regularity of the search-and-seizure or interception proceedings.
• Lawfulness of the collection: judicial authorization, proportionality of the intrusion and respect for fundamental rights in the investigation.
• Age and nature of the material: expert evidence on the apparent age and on the real, simulated or generated character of the content.

Art. 189.8 CP also provides for the removal or blocking of websites or applications containing such material, a measure that may be ordered even as an interim measure at the request of the Public Prosecutor.

Lines of Defense and Guidance

The defense in these proceedings demands both criminal and technical specialization. The work focuses on verifying that all the elements of the offense are present and that the evidence has been obtained and preserved with full guarantees: discussion of material authorship and effective control of the device; of knowledge and intent regarding the material; of the classification among the different conducts of Art. 189 CP and its distinction from Arts. 181, 182 and 183 CP; challenge to the chain of custody and to the lawfulness of the digital evidence; analysis of error as to age or the nature of the material where applicable; and assessment of mitigating factors. We act before the Investigating Courts, the Criminal Courts, the Provincial Courts and the High Courts of Justice.

A conviction for these offenses carries significant ancillary consequences —disqualification, entry in the Central Registry of Sex Offenders and supervised release following the sentence—, which reinforces the importance of an early, technical and discreet defense.