We defend possession of child pornography cases. Contact Van Severen Law Office, S.C. at (414) 270-0202 for serious help.
Possession of child pornography in Wisconsin is a Class D felony. That means if you’re convicted of the offense, you face a maximum possible penalty of 25 years prison, $100,000.00 in fines, or both. This is a significant penalty, and the prison sentence breaks down into a maximum of 15 years initial confinement followed by 10 years extended supervision. Initial confinement is actual time in prison, and extended supervision is community release similar to probation.
Lawmakers also decided that mandatory minimum penalties should apply to this offense. Courts are required to sentence defendants to at least 3 years initial confinement for each charged count of child pornography. Fortunately, numerous counts within one case can be run concurrent (at the same time). For a brief period of time (our firm was successful doing this), the law was unclear and allowed certain defendants to be sentenced to probationary terms when facing child porn charges. That “loophole” has been closed by Wisconsin appellate courts, and they made it clear that all defendants convicted of this offense must be sentenced to prison.
Van Severen Law Office, S.C. is a criminal defense law firm based in Milwaukee, WI. We represent defendants throughout the state facing serious felony charges just like this. Whether your goal is to resolve the case with a plea deal, fight against unconstitutional or otherwise illegal government conduct with pre-trial motions, or challenge the case at trial, you’ll be in good hands with our firm. We’re in court for our clients on a daily basis, and we’re familiar with the complexities involved in criminal law. Contact us at (414) 270-0202 and let’s figure out how we can fight your case together.
What is possession of child pornography? Section 948.12 of the Wisconsin Statutes:
Section 948.12 of the Wisconsin Statutes prohibits possession of child pornography. The crime occurs when the defendant “possesses, or accesses in any way with the intent to view, any undeveloped film, photographic negative, photograph, motion picture, videotape, or other recording of a child engaged in sexually explicit conduct under all of the following circumstances…”
Sections 948.12(1m)a – c describe the aforementioned circumstances:
The person knows that he or she possesses or has accessed the material; and
The person knows, or reasonably should know, that the material that is possessed or accessed contains depictions of sexually explicit conduct; and
The person knows or reasonably should know, that the child depicted in the material who is engaged in sexually explicit conduct has not attained the age of 18 years.
Certainly this crime is pretty straightforward. Firstly, the defendant possessed some kind of recording. The defendant knew what was on the recording. He knew it contained sexually explicit conduct. And he knew, or should know, that the image showed someone under 18.
But this also certainly begins to explain a way to defend the charge: how did the defendant know the subject was under 18 years old? Certainly in some cases establishing that is relatively simple. But it becomes a lot more difficult in other cases. For example, what if the individual in the picture is 17 years old? We can all tell that a 10 year old is under 18, but what happens as we move closer to that age? Unless the government can produce the person in the picture, they may have a tough time proving the case against you.
What are the elements of this offense?
All crimes in Wisconsin have “elements.” An element is a part of the offense, and all elements must be proven beyond a reasonable doubt. If the government cannot prove each element beyond a reasonable doubt, they cannot convict you of the charge.
Firstly, the defendant knowingly possessed a recording, or accessed a recording in any way with intent to view it; and
Secondly, the recording showed a child engaged in sexually explicit conduct.
Thirdly, the defendant knew or reasonably should have known the recording contained depictions of a person engaged in actual or simulated explicit conduct; and
Finally, the defendant knew or reasonably should have known that the person shown in the recording, or depicted in the material, engaged in sexually explicit conduct was under the age of 18 years.
Sometimes, criminal jury instructions also provide important definitions:
Possessed means the defendant knowingly had physical control of the recording. A recording is also in a person’s possession if it is in an area over which the person has control and the person intended to exercise control over the recording. We call this constructive possession.
A child is a person under the age of 18 years. Sexually explicit conduct means actual or simulated sexual intercourse, bestiality, masturbation, sexual sadism or sexual masochistic abuse, or lewd exhibition of an intimate part.
Defending possession of child pornography cases
Obviously, defending child pornography cases effectively requires expertise in this area of law. Generally police don’t just pull an individual over and find child pornography. There are search warrants for email addresses, subpoenas for internet records, and lots of background investigation. If the police screw up, it’s up to your criminal defense attorney to find that mistake. And this is incredibly important – a police error may lead to suppression (exclusion) of all the evidence against you. If that’s the case, and there isn’t an alternate way to prove the criminal charges against you, this could result in a complete dismissal of your case.
Frequently police will interrogate you upon arrest. If you confess to the offense, certainly that will change the dynamic of the entire case. That being said, there are laws and rules that law enforcement officers must follow when conducting an investigation. For example, they must read you your Miranda rights if you’re in custody and being interrogated. If they don’t, the statements they obtain from you may not be admissible in court. Importantly, we believe it’s important to avoid speaking to the police without first consulting with a criminal defense lawyer.
Finally, there are more specialized motions to defeat child pornography charges. For example, the images may have not depicted “sexually explicit conduct.” The child may not have appeared to be under 18 years old. Or the images may have been placed on your computer by a computer virus. These are all issues to consider in a possession of child pornography case.
Possession of child pornography is a very serious felony in Wisconsin. This charge carries a maximum penalty of 25 years in prison, $100,000.00 in fines, or both. Contact Van Severen Law Office, S.C. at (414) 270-0202 to speak with our criminal defense lawyers.
Finally, contact Van Severen Law Office and speak with a top criminal defense lawyer: (414) 270-0202
Possession of child pornography charges are very serious, and a conviction for this offense will send you to prison. We recognize that avoiding that result is incredibly important. We’ve won cases for previous clients in various ways. Can we find motion issues that could result in a dismissal of the charges against you? Or is your case one that will proceed to trial? We’re prepared for both possibilities and always do our best to achieve wins for our clients.
Importantly, our criminal defense attorneys regularly represent individuals facing allegations involving both sexual crimes and crimes involving children. We recognize that handling these cases requires exceptional attention to detail, smart tactics, and an unwavering dedication to our clients. They’re not easy, but it’s the kind of work that we dedicate ourselves to every single day.
Finally, give us a call. We can’t help you unless you do. Our firm is available 24/7, with an answering service that takes calls after hours. Contact us at (414) 270-0202. Let’s work together and present your best defense.
