Jake's Case — Access & Possess Child Porn — Withdrawn

Client:  Jake, Accused
Complainant:  Peel Regional Police Force, Internet Child Exploitation Unit
Charges:  Accessing and Possession of Child Pornography

Background:  Walking out of his bank, Jake was about to enter his car. He was grabbed by the police, pushed against the hood of his car, and arrested for accessing child pornography. The police seized his laptop from the car. Jake was still in shock as he was escorted to the police station. He remembered being interviewed for what felt like hours. He was released, but the police kept his laptop. That was the status of the matter when I became involved. I contacted the officer-in-charge. She informed me that the investigation "was continuing." Unbeknownst to us, the police had retained an expert. This so-called expert opined that the pornographic models on Jake's computer were between 13.3 and 15.3 years old. As a result, Jake was arrested and charged with accessing and possessing child pornography.

READ THE POLICE REPORT

Goals:  Jake travelled internationally for his work. He was rightly concerned about how his ability to travel would be affected by a child pornography conviction. He was also concerned about the serious sentence and stigma that would follow such a conviction (including, of course, his placement on the sex offender registry). Our goal was to have the charges dismissed or withdrawn.

Strategy:  Although there were search warrant problems — see Nathan's case to see how they can be fatal — I first focused on the ages of the models. To my untrained but not inexperienced eye, the models didn't look under 18; but I knew that the Crown would not accept my assessment. Fortunately, I was able to make contact with the webmaster of the website that hosted the images now alleged to be child pornography. Even more fortunately, he was cooperative. Within a few weeks, he e-mailed pictures of the two models holding passports next to their faces. According to their passports, the models were, at the time, 20 and 21.

Results:  Presented with this information, the Crown decided not to proceed. The charges were then withdrawn. The whole process took just over six months.

READ THE TRANSCRIPT of the withdrawal