4/06/2026

UPPER MICHIGAN - Michigan lawmakers have advanced a new online child-safety package of bills, as a California jury last week found Meta and Google liable in a 6-million-dollar youth-harm case. The Michigan plan includes the Online Safety Act for Kids, the Kids Code, and SAFE for Kids Act – aimed at limiting addictive features, boosting privacy and giving parents more control of their kids' online access. John DeMay, a U.P. father and advocate, says his 17-year-old son Jordan died by suicide in 2022 after being targeted on Instagram, coerced into sending explicit images and then extorted.

                    0:13  "Jordan quickly realized that the young lady that reached out to him on Instagram was actually an adult male from Nigeria – that’s when the extortion happened. He ended up paying them $300 dollars one time, and tried paying them an additional $55, and drained his accounts."

DeMay’s case led to multiple arrests and federal convictions, but he says prevention is the real goal. Now, he believes the California court decision could mark a turning point by focusing on how the platforms are designed, not just what users post.