Howard County Child Pornography Lawyer

Any photograph, video, other digital print capturing any children or minor engaged in any sexual type of environment or activity that is designed for a prurient interest. Prurient means encouraging or exciting interest in sexual matters. Not included would be photos taken by a parent of a child in a bathtub. Parents take pictures of their children in the bathtub playing with soap, that is not pornography. Photographs of children that are considered art are not of prurient interest. It needs to reflect prurient interest to constitute pornography in that way.

If you are charged with possession of child pornography, it is crucial to contact an experienced sex crimes attorney. These charges can have lasting effects if convicted and it is important to consult with a Howard County child pornography lawyer.

Unique Aspects

There are two levels of a child pornography charge. Possession of child pornography and felony child pornography which could be either distribution or possession with intent to distribute.

Child pornography cases are constructed in a unique way due to interpretation. If looking at a picture, how do you know the person in a picture is truly a child or you may have individuals that look young but they may not be young.

Seized pictures or videos are compared in the database of known images. Then the prosecutors need to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the individual in that photograph or video is truly underage.

Law Enforcement

Law enforcement pursues child pornographers as a priority. It is not just the possession or copying; it is the whole industry that creates child pornography. Law enforcement comes down hard on the distributors and creators, but also the users, the viewers, and the downloaders.

It is very difficult to capture the individuals taking the pictures and making the videos, especially if they create it in another country, which is oftentimes the case. Law Enforcement wants to get the people here locally that are making videos and pictures to try to end a culture of victimization of children. Additionally, individuals cannot be charged if they are in another city or state.

Minor as a Defendant

Like any offense, a minor can be held and charged in the juvenile system as long as they are not waived to the adult system. The juvenile courts can deal with them and handle them which are generally preferable for these types of charges. The juvenile courts can allow a minor redemption and the ability to resolve the matter without having a criminal record and being a sex offender for a potentially long period of time.

Role of an Attorney

They should contact an experienced Howard County child pornography lawyer right away as child pornography charges do not come in a conventional way. Law enforcement can learn that an individual has child pornography on their home computer because they use a certain type of browser or download site, a file sharing site like Limewire or any of those other sites, that are specifically designed for this type of viewing. If an individual has his computer set to “share folders,” other users can download from his computer.

A Howard County child pornography lawyer will ensure that all of your constitutional rights are followed. Sometimes with these charges, law enforcement my want to search one’s home, computer, and other things. Making sure law enforcement has a warrant and right to search is an issue that can come up with a child pornography case.

Contact a Howard County Child Pornography Lawyer

A Howard County child pornography attorney can try to work out the best possible resolution, ensure that the State has enough evidence to prove any charges, challenge the evidence if need be, and properly represent the client through all steps of the process; be their guide to get the optimal result.

If charged with child pornography, it is crucial to contact an experienced and local Howard County child pornography lawyer immediately.