Florida law classifies the production, possession, and transmission of child pornography as a felony. Any child pornography charge is a serious one and if convicted, you can be sentenced to many years in prison with your name added to the sex offender database. If you or someone you know has been charged with a child pornography crime, call Pallegar Law, P.A. to be connected to an experienced Tampa child pornography defense attorney who can help you fight the charges.
The crime of using a child in a sexual performance occurs when someone employs or coerces a child under 18 to participate in a sexual performance, or when their legal guardian consents to their participation in said performance. This crime is a second-degree felony, punishable by 15 years in prison and fines up to $10,000.
The promotion of a sexual performance by a child is also a second-degree felony. The crime occurs when a person creates, produces, or oversees any performance involving sexual conduct by a child under 18 years old.
Possession of child pornography with the intent to promote is also a second-degree felony. Possession of any photograph, video, exhibition, or representation that includes sexual conduct by a child under 18 constitutes this crime, as long as intent can be proven. If it cannot be proven that the defendant intended to promote the content, the crime is lessened to a third-degree felony—possessing, controlling, or viewing child pornography. That crime can be punishable by five years in prison and fines of up to $5,000.
Lack of knowledge is not a defense to the promotion of child pornography, although it may be a defense to the crime of possession. A possible defense to a possession charge may be that the illegal content was contained in a virus that infected the defendant’s computer. In the age of computers, it is not always easy to determine where content is coming from, who owns it, and who views it. For this reason, if you have been charged with a child pornography crime, it is important to contact an experienced Tampa child pornography defense attorney at Pallegar Law, P.A. to help you explore your options.
For child pornography-related crimes, each piece of content (i.e. one photograph) is counted as a separate charge. So, if you are found to be in possession of 100 photos constituting child pornography, you will be charged with 100 counts of child pornography, a third-degree felony. This could result in more than 100 years in prison. In the same way, each child depicted in the illegal content constitutes a separate count. If you are found to be in possession of one photo depicting ten children, you will be charged with ten counts of child pornography.
Perhaps the most stigmatizing part of being charged with a child pornography-related crime is the possibility of being registered as a sex offender. Conviction of any child pornography crime means that the defendant is required to register on the sex offender database.
If you have been charged with a child pornography crime, your reputation, employment, and family may be negatively affected. Contact an aggressive Tampa child pornography defense attorney today who can help you fight the charges. Call Pallegar Law, P.A. at 813-444-3912 (Tampa) or 941-893-5816 (Sarasota) for help.