How To Make Your DEFENDING PEOPLE CHARGED WITH INTERNET CRIMES
According to reports published by the United States federal government, by the mid-1980s, child-pornography trafficking within the United States had been virtually eliminated through successful campaigns by federal and state authorities.
In the 1980s, child pornography was difficult and expensive to produce, however, with the advent of computers and the Internet, child pornography has become easier to acquire, reproduce, and store.
Digital cameras and the ease with which images and films can be posted on the Internet, with a World Wide Web that knows no borders, have made it easy for distributors and collectors of child pornography to obtain illegal photos and videos. Although most people have some awareness of the vast amount of pornography that exists on the Internet, the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children estimates that 20% of all Internet pornography contains children.
Legally, 20% of pornography found on the Internet is illegal in the United States.
As the availability of child pornography has increased, federal and state punishment for crimes related to child pornography has increased. Recently, the United States Department of Justice announced a national strategy to eradicate child pornography. These efforts include nationalized databases that allow states to share information and the appointment of 38 assistant US attorneys to prosecute child pornography offenses across the United States.
A person need only open a newspaper or watch television to find a news article or picture of a man whose name and reputation have been tarnished by state or federal charges related to child pornography possession.
Instead of focusing on people who create child pornography, efforts have shifted and law enforcement is now targeting people who possess child pornography. To help prosecute regular citizens, the federal government has partnered with Internet search engines to find people who search for, download, and contain child pornography.
Computer crime is not limited to the possession or distribution of child pornography.
Many people have seen television shows where law enforcement uses a computer to trap suspects in illegal situations (for example, NBC's documentary on Catching a Predator, etc.).
In such situations, a law enforcement officer disguises himself as a minor and escorts a suspect to a location; The place is usually represented as the home of the minor. When the unlucky person arrives at the minor's home, television cameras record the conversation between the surprised adult and law enforcement.
Sometimes, the unfortunate person believes (or hopes) that he or she may be able to "speak up" about a possible arrest; However, statements made by the individual are recorded and possibly used by a prosecutor as the basis for a criminal case.
In short, sex crimes, Internet crimes, and computer crimes are the primary focus of state and federal law enforcement across the country.
Computer test
As with any case involving computers, it is important to use a computer expert in any case of child pornography. The use of such experts can help establish a criminal defense by showing the following:
• when an invalid file was downloaded;
A computer program was used to download an illegal file;
A computer user has downloaded an illegal file;
• whether an invalid file was placed on the computer because of a computer virus;
• whether the illegal file was "hacked" by someone on the computer into the computer of an unintended user, and;
• whether the persons depicted in the photographs and/or films are actually "children" or models over the legal age of consent who are "posing" as minors.
Unfortunately, most attorneys do not have sufficient knowledge of computer technology to consider using computer experts. Most attorneys without sufficient computer background believe that if child pornography is found on a computer, that person is "guilty".
Examples of common situations
Across the United States, prosecutors can file a variety of charges against a person for using a computer in what may appear to be legal proceedings.
Here are three common examples:
Example #1: A suspect searches for pornographic material on the Internet and subsequently downloads both legal and illegal material (eg, child pornography, etc.). The illegal content actually comes from a website that is run by the federal government with the sole purpose of tracking down and arresting people who download child pornography. Once law enforcement has downloaded illegal material from a computer, a warrant is requested from a local court and the computer is seized and searched.
Individuals are arrested even when they do not know they have downloaded files on their computers.
In the 1980s, child pornography was difficult and expensive to produce, however, with the advent of computers and the Internet, child pornography has become easier to acquire, reproduce, and store. Digital cameras and the ease with which images and films can be posted on the Internet, with a World Wide Web that knows no borders, have made it easy for distributors and collectors of child pornography to obtain illegal photos and videos. Although most people have some awareness of the vast amount of pornography that exists on the Internet, the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children estimates that 20% of all Internet pornography contains children. Legally, 20% of pornography found on the Internet is illegal in the United States. As the availability of child pornography has increased, federal and state punishment for crimes related to child pornography has increased. To help prosecute regular citizens, the federal government has partnered with Internet search engines to find people who search for, download, and contain child pornography. Computer crime is not limited to the possession or distribution of child pornography. In such situations, a law enforcement officer disguises himself as a minor and escorts a suspect to a location; The place is usually represented as the home of the minor. Examples of common situations Across the United States, prosecutors can file a variety of charges against a person for using a computer in what may appear to be legal proceedings. The illegal content actually comes from a website that is run by the federal government with the sole purpose of tracking down and arresting people who download child pornography.
As the availability of child pornography has increased, federal and state punishment for crimes related to child pornography has increased.In In the 1980s, child pornography was difficult and expensive to produce, however, with the advent of computers and the Internet, child pornography has become easier to acquire, reproduce, and store. Computer crime is not limited to the possession or distribution of child pornography. To help prosecute regular citizens, the federal government has partnered with Internet search engines to find people who search for, download, and contain child pornography. The illegal content actually comes from a website that is run by the federal government with the sole purpose of tracking down and arresting people who download child pornography.
