California Child Pornography Charges

Posted on: August 14, 2009 at 7:55 a.m.

When a skilled Los Angeles criminal defense attorney represents someone charged with child pornography crimes, he must devise a unique, sophisticated defense. Any child pornography charge in Los Angeles, or any other part of California, carries serious penalties and requires the skill of a Los Angeles criminal defense attorney with a unique background, successful track record and unmatched knowledge of the law.

One individual who could have used a skilled Los Angeles criminal defense attorney is Keith Griffin of Marin County. he claimed that the child pornography police found on his computer was indeed downloaded...by his cat. He claims that he would step away from his computer for long periods of time and return to find his cat had downloaded the child pornography without his being present. Unfortunately, the man had over 1,000 images of child pornography on his computer and is being charged with 10 counts of possession of child pornography. He is also being held on $250,000 bail.

If you are charged with such a sexual offense, you need could be facing some of the stiffest penalties California has to offer. For example, possessing, distributing or manufacturing child pornography is punishable by serious jail time, long periods of probation, community service, limited access to public parks and even inclusion on the California Sex Offender Registry. Any of these penalties could cause permanent damage to your future, your relationships, your current employment and more. Los Angeles child pornography laws offer severe penalties, and both juries and judges can be prejudiced against anyone charged with such a crime.

The Los Angeles criminal defense attorneys at Kestenbaum, Eisner & Gorin have years of experience with child pornography laws, including Section 311.11 of the penal code. Our criminal defense team has years of experience with Los Angeles courts, Los Angeles laws, sex offenses and more. In fact, our attorneys have over fifty years of experience, and many of those years were spent working in Los Angeles District Attorneys' Offices.

If you are facing child pornography charges, contact our law offices today at 877-781-1570.

Tagged as: child pornography pc 311_11

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Sexual Predators & Child Pornography in Los Angeles

Posted on: March 27, 2009 at 6:35 a.m.

The city of Los Angeles is sometimes known as "porn valley" because the adult industry is primarily based in the San Fernando Valley. While pornography for those 18-years-old and over is perfectly legal, it is illegal to to create or own any images or video for those under the age of 18. Los Angeles child pornography charges are serious, and only qualified Los Angeles criminal defense attorneys should be trusted to defend anyone facing such charges.

The invention of the Internet has changed the way people live their lives. From online stores like Amazon.com to being able to catch up on your favorite television shows to online banking and bill pay, we all spend significant amounts of time on the Internet every day. Children are no exception. Neither are sexual predators. The Internet has arguably made it even easier for the exchange of child pornography and for sexual predators to find potential victims.

All forms of child pornography are illegal not only in Los Angeles, but the rest of the nation as well. For legal purposes, child pornographyis usually defined as any depiction of a minor committing a sexually explicit act. While child pornography is generally either a photo or video in format, in some jurisdictions even a drawing of a child in a sexual situation would be illegal. Digital cameras and the Internet have made the spread of child pornography a multi-billion dollar business all over the world.

While other nations may or may not have laws preventing child pornography, the United States does. Anyone found in possession of such imagery or video can be charged with a criminal offense, even if they purchased it online from another country.

Soliciting sex from minors through the Internet has also been on the rise over the last decade. The abundance of online chat rooms and social networking websites make anonymity easy. Many adults can and do pose as minors on these websites before suggesting a face to face meeting with a minor they meet online. Countless cases of abduction, molestation, rape and even murder begin this way.

In some cases, adults may not even need to pose as minors, but will still solicit sex from minors they meet in online chat rooms. Even with the consent of the minor, this would still constitute statutory rape or enticement, both of which are criminal offenses. Criminal offenses that are sexual in nature have a strong stigma attached to them that lingers even after court-given punishments are completed. Many states require sex offenders to register with local law enforcement after they finish their prison terms.

In places like Los Angeles, this registry is put online and open for the public to access. Even sensitive information such as a home address is put on the registry for anyone to see. A conviction for a sexual offense may also severely limit where a person can live or work. Being charged with a criminal offense such as the possession of child pornography or soliciting sex from a minor is a potentially life-altering event that requires the skilled guidance of an experienced criminal defense attorney. With your freedom and reputation on the line, call the attorneys at Kestenbaum, Eisner & Gorin, LLP right away to begin preparing your defense.

Tagged as: child pornography pc 311_11

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Surprising Culprits of Child Pornography

Posted on: March 10, 2009 at 12:50 p.m.

Los Angeles is home to the San Fernando Valley, also known as Porn Valley to some. Along with the adult industry comes a highly illegal crime known as child pornography. Los Angeles criminal defense lawyers regularly defend those accused of and charged with child pornography charges. Child pornography (sometimes abbreviated CP) refers to images or films depicting sexually explicit activities involving a child; as such, child pornography is a visual record of child sexual abuse. In the United States, child pornography is illegal under federal law and in all cities and states, including Los Angeles, CA.

Many people have an image of a dirty old man in an overcoat kidnapping little children to make child pornography, but in reality the situation is often much different and much harder to interpret. For example, a former New Jersey lawmaker who once championed bills aimed at fighting child pornography pleaded not guilty Tuesday to child porn and official misconduct charges in his first public appearance since the state began investigating him in July.

A judge determined Neil Cohen is not a flight risk, so he can remain free without bail with restrictions. He's not allowed to "loiter or linger" around playgrounds or schools, have unsupervised contact with children under 16 or use the Internet for purposes other than business.

In Los Angeles, child pornography charges can lead to serious jail time, heavy fines and a permanent place on the sex offense registry for California.

Our Los Angeles Criminal Defense Lawyers aggressively defend charges of Child Pornography, and have utilized the latest court ruling in California interpreting Penal Code Section 311.11. The ruling states that an individual who possesses multiple images of child pornography on a computer can only be convicted of one count of possessing such images. In other words, if the police recover a computer with multiple images from suspects home, the defendant can only be charged with one criminal violation.

Tagged as: child pornography pc 311_11

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Child Pornography Charges for Minnesota Man

Posted on: December 8, 2008 at 3:09 p.m.

Producing, possessing or distributing images of minors (anyone under the age of 18) engaged in sexual conduct is illegal. Some states in the United States and many countries allow sexual conduct and marriage between adults and minors, but visual depictions of that conduct are prohibited in the United States by federal law. Similarly, sexual conduct between minors or by a minor is often tolerated but visual depictions of that conduct are also prohibited. Child Pornography laws in the United States exist to protect children and are strictly enforced - websites that display any content that might be considered child pornography should expect to be prosecuted.

In Minnesota, a man has pleaded guilty to answering an online advertisement for baby-sitting work and then using the client's child to make a pornographic video. In a plea deal with federal prosecutors, Aaron Jay Lemon admitted to producing the video. The 23-year-old from Little Canada also admitted to coercing a minor to engage in sexually explicit conduct.

The plea agreement says Lemon filmed the child in St. Paul after seeking the baby-sitting job through Craigslist. St. Paul police say the victim was a 2-year-old girl. The U.S. attorney's office says the case was part of a project that encourages agencies to investigate the sexual exploitation of children over the Internet.

Child pornography refers to material depicting children being in a state of undress, engaged in erotic poses or sexual activity. Child sexual abuse occurs in the production of child pornography when sexual acts are photographed, and the effects of the abuse on the child (and continuing into maturity) are compounded by the wide distribution and lasting availability of the photographs of the abuse. The word "child" in the phrase "child pornography" refers to prepubescent children, and does not refer to post-puberty teenagers. For practical reasons, legal definitions of child pornography generally refer to a wider age range, including any pornography involving a minor, according to jurisdiction.

Tagged as: child pornography pc 311_11

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Child Pornography Charges Penal Code Section 311.11 - New Case Ruling

Posted on: November 17, 2008 at 2:12 a.m.

As child pornography prosecutions have become more visible in Southern California courts, Los Angeles Criminal Lawyers should be aware of a recent decision in this area.

The Ninth Circuit concluded that the seizure of child pornography and other evidence of an elderly man

Tagged as: child pornography pc 311_11

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Child Pornography In Iraq War

Posted on: October 15, 2008 at 9:34 a.m.

One of the worst crimes against children is a child pornography crime. Child pornography refers to material depicting children being in a state of undress, engaged in erotic poses or sexual activity. Child sexual abuse occurs in the production of child pornography when sexual acts are photographed, and the effects of the abuse on the child (and continuing into maturity) are compounded by the wide distribution and lasting availability of the photographs of the abuse.

For practical reasons, legal definitions of child pornography generally refer to a wider age range, including any pornography involving a minor, according to jurisdiction. Most possessors of child pornography who are arrested are found to possess images of prepubescent children; possessors of pornographic images of post-puberty minors might be less likely to be prosecuted, even though those images also fall within the statutes.

In regard to the Iraq case, a federal judge rejected arguments Friday from a former civilian contractor in Iraq who said his sentence for possessing child pornography should be lighter to more closely align with what military personnel would face. The prosecutor in the case said the defendant's case is "a run-of-the-mill child pornography possession case that happened to take place in Baghdad." The defendant had a history of viewing child pornography, and is being tried in federal court.

Law enforcement authorities at the local, state, and federal levels have been investing more and more resources in the investigation of Internet crimes. California Penal Code Section 311.11 specifically makes illegal the possession of child pornography. Charges of child pornography may be prosecuted by the government in either state or federal court. While pornography depicting adults is typically protected speech under the 1st Amendment of the U.S. Constitution, child pornography is considered to be illegal speech, and is not subject to constitutional protections.

The attorneys at Kestenbaum, Eisner & Gorin, LLP are experienced in defending the accused in Child Pornography matters. Our criminal lawyers aggressively defend individuals on child pornography charges. With more than 50 years experience, our former senior Los Angeles prosecutors are well-aware of how the government builds its case. The government must prove the client was in actual possession of the images, and that the images were unlawful. To be unlawful, the images must not be digitally-created. Further, the government must prove the client was aware of what was on his or her computer.

Tagged as: child pornography pc 311_11

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Child Pornography and Educators: A Scary Mixture

Posted on: August 18, 2008 at 9:40 a.m.

Most parents send their children to school without worrying much at all about whether or not their teachers are in possession of child pornography. However, just last year there were a number of instances where educators throughout southern Califorina were investigated and/or prosecuted for possessing child pornography.

Two Los Angeles area teachers were arrested in 2007 on suspicion of possessing child pornography according to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials. The suspects include a teacher at Pasadena

Tagged as: child pornography pc 311_11

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The Complexity of Child Pornography Cases

Posted on: August 12, 2008 at 9:17 a.m.

Lindsay, CA, a town roughly 200 miles north of Los Angeles, has an increasingly complex case involving a man accused of viewing child pornography at a public library.

The basic details are that, allegedly, then-assistant librarian Brenda Biesterfeld of the Lindsay Library found Donny Crisler viewing images of child pornography on one of the library's computers. Biesterfeld reported it to her superior who allegedly did nothing about it, which led her to report it to the police. After Crisler, who was caught allegedly viewing child pornography, was arrested, it was discovered that he was deaf and dumb. Biesterfeld was fired after the event, which she alleges was because of her actions in reporting the infraction to the police. However, the library alleges the event had nothing to do with her firing.

In July, the court ruled that Donny Crisler had to take a psychological evaluation, for which a sign language interpreter is needed. This puts the criminal case against Crisler at a stand still until his ability to competantly participate in his own defense is evaluated.

Recently, a member of the California Assembly recently passed a bill through the Assembly Public Safety Committee regarding child pornography which requires offenders convicted of possession of child pornography to register as sex offenders and which expands the list of qualifying offenses permitting offenders convicted of possession of child pornography with prior sex offense convictions to receive enhanced penalties to include all offenses that require registration as a sex offender. Under current law, such offenders DO NOT have to register as sex offenders.

Tagged as: child pornography pc 311_11

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Child Pornography Defense: Criminal Laws Upheld by the U.S. Supreme Court

Posted on: July 22, 2008 at 7:43 a.m.

Internet downloading of child pornography has been a hot-button law enforcement issue in the past year. Los Angeles criminal lawyers are seeing more and more arrests, through the cooperation of local L.A. police department and federal agents.

Criminal defense attorneys should be aware that the U.S. Supreme Court has recently upheld a strict new federal laws that makes it a crime to send messages over the computer that offer or seek child pornography, even when no such pornography exists.

The 7-2 ruling gives prosecutors a powerful weapon to go after those who talk about child pornography online. It also appears to take away a defense for those who say the material they were discussing involves computer images, not depictions of real children engaged in sex.

These type of charges are very serious, carrying substantial prison time. Typical defense inquiries in these cases include 1)who actually downloaded the pornography and 2)who possessed the photos or video at the time of the police arrest. See Child Pornography Defense Attorneys

Tagged as: child pornography pc 311_11

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The Dangerous World of Child Pornography

Posted on: June 12, 2008 at 11 a.m.

Child pornography is illegal, and there is very little leniency in the law. With the ease with which individuals are able to obtain child pornography via the Internet, state, local and federal law enforcement officials have increasingly been looking to crack down on potential violators. The Supreme Court of the United States has again and again reaffirmed laws prohibiting creating and disseminating child pornography.

However, there are various sides to this issue and the prosecution of these laws can often net unintended victims. For example, those in the many artistic communities across the nation see what they are creating as quite different from child pornography. However, these individuals have often been arrested, charged and convicted under laws prohibiting child pornography. Also, people often considered religious zealots have attempted to use child pornography laws to interfere with the adult film business, which has time and again been considered legal.

The laws governing child pornography often change though; in 2002 the Supreme Court struck down a 1996 law because it interfered with legitimate educational and scientific studies. However, the most recent developments have led to tougher laws and stiffer penalties for child pornography. This has also led to sex offense databases across the nation containing the information of anyone who has violated child pornography laws. Being put on this list is a permanent punishment.

One of the ways the law enforcement or government agency prosecuting child pornography laws can error is in how they collect information. For example, while Internet providers have agreed to block child pornography, and they often give their information to the agencies investigating child pornography crimes, there are still constitutional guidelines the agencies must follow in collecting evidence.

For more information on the defense of child pornography charges, please contact the attorneys at Kestenbaum, Eisner & Gorin, LLP.

Tagged as: california criminal laws, child pornography pc 311_11, internet crimes defense, sex crime accusations

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