Child Pornography Investigations

The Internet is widely considered to be the most important innovation of the past century. The Internet has resulted in the worldwide exchange of information. It has accommodated instantaneous communication between loved ones from across the globe. It allows everyone with a smart phone the ability to access the entire collective knowledge accumulated by the human race. And it allows us to send funny memes to each other in order to lighten the mood. As much good as the internet has facilitated, it has also resulted in increased wrongdoing as well. The Internet facilitates crime as much as it facilitates less damaging activities. If you’ve been charged with any Internet based criminal offense, you should immediately contact a dedicated St. Petersburg criminal lawyer.

One criminal offense that has increased along with elevated use of the internet is possession of child pornography. Without internet, child pornography offenders would be forced to meet face to face to exchange illicit materials, to send and receive pornographic material through the mail, or to obtain the ill gotten goods in more dangerous transactions. Through the use of the internet, child pornography can be easily downloaded or exchanged in seemingly anonymous transactions. This seeming anonymity can make obtaining child pornography materials much more tempting to those who might otherwise avoid such things.

Many people who are charged with child pornography offenses have never before been involved with the criminal justice system, and simply don’t know what to do or how to approach the situation. The simple solution is to hire a dedicated St. Petersburg criminal defense attorney. A lawyer can help guide you through the investigation and beyond. A lawyer can conduct his or her own investigation to influence the police and the prosecutors. A lawyer can make compelling legal arguments to help insure that you don’t face criminal charges or otherwise get the best resolution for your case.

Child pornography investigations often begin with an Internet Service Provider receiving an automated hit that a user has downloaded, viewed, or exchanged child pornography materials. This hit will result in the Service Provider turning over the personal information for the user identified by the automated hit. Law enforcement officers will then proceed to use that information to seek a search warrant from a judge. Once a search warrant is approved, the officers will show up at the home of the suspect and seize any electronic devices, including cell phones, computers, and hard drives which might potentially contain child pornography.

At this stage of the investigation, many people are not actually arrested for the criminal offenses. Instead, law enforcement seizes their property in order to inventory and investigate every piece of child pornography in order to best determine how to charge the suspect. For this reason, many people choose not to contact a lawyer, and some even choose to cooperate with the police, believing that they will receive lenient treatment from the court later on. Unfortunately, this is nothing but a trap. Police and prosecutors will not hesitate to use your cooperation and your statements against you. Instead of blindly cooperating with authorities, your best bet will almost always be to contact a skilled and dedicated St. Petersburg criminal lawyer to build your defense.

The attorneys at Hanlon Law have decades of combined experience defending clients in all manner of criminal cases. From minor misdemeanor offenses to sex offenses and homicides, we are prepared to develop and execute the best defense strategy for your specific case. We work closely with our clients to ensure that we have a firm grasp of all of the facts of their cases, and we make sure to keep our clients appraised of all of the updates on their cases. We believe that criminal defense is a collaborative effort between the attorney and client and our results speak for themselves. Call us today for a consultation at 727.289.0222.