Hampton Roads Child Pornography Investigation

For child pornography charges to be brought in Hampton Roads federal courts, the prosecution must show that the pornography either originated or was received within the Hampton Roads area. This process often begins with a Hampton Roads child pornography investigation.

Sometimes teenagers in a relationship send naked pictures of one another. However, adult cases typically involve chat rooms or message boards where they view images if minors. Either can be considered a sex crimes offense. Therefore, it could be critical to speak with a skilled child pornography attorney right away.

Agencies Involved in Child Pornography Cases

Possession cases are generally left to the local authorities. In federal court, there is not always the federal nexus that can be shown that this was across state lines; that a person knew that they were reaching out across state lines.

Usually, the State Police Major Crimes Unit handles sex and major crimes. Local law enforcement will also be involved in Hampton Roads child pornography investigations with their own detectives and agencies that are trained to investigate matters like this. Depending on the circumstances, a person may see federal agencies. However, those are usually for the larger cases. Most of the time, it is handled within state and local authorities.

Federal Child Porn Cases

If the prosecution can show that a person is distributing child pornography across state lines, that would be handled in federal court. Also, any time the internet is involved in child pornography it could almost always result in a federal crime, however, they may defer to the state. 

The FBI will involved in federal cases. Those are usually the larger cases and often have to do with child sex trafficking, and child pornography is part of the whole situation, and that is why the federal government gets involved.

What is the Court Process for Pornography Cases Involving Minors?

Usually, the government receives a tip that someone is in possession of these types of documents, usually on their computer. Often, a family member finds out about it and calls the police who then conduct a full Hampton Roads child pornography investigation. The police will execute a search warrant, seize the computer, and conduct a forensic analysis.

The prosecution needs to prove that the person is in possession of pornography, meaning, the accused either had it in their hands, on their computer, had it visible to them, or that it was available to them); that part of the material was sexually explicit visual material. This usually involves some sort of sexual conduct or something sexual about the photo with an unidentifiable minor, or someone under 18, in the photo.

Important Evidence and Tools to Collect Prior to Trial

The police will size computers, cameras; anything they believe has photographs. A person’s hard drive will show internet history, but if it is necessary, the authorities can contact their internet provider to see a history for all of those logs. They are able to at least somewhat reconstruct things that are deleted from the hard drive.

They use a lot of the same evidence in state cases and in federal cases where they find photos, often from a computer that was seized, seizing the phones, or even a camera; and also any statements that a person has made can be used against them.

Legal Resources an Attorney May Use

Because these cases involve computers, a charged person should have an attorney with at least some knowledge of internet searches and the ability to do forensic searches, especially if part of the defense is no knowledge of the ages of the people depicted in the photos.

The accused should speak with an attorney who can begin their own Hampton Roads child pornography investigation. They could try to determine whether or not this is a case where they are arguing that the charged person was not in possession of these items.