State v. Mr. M (DMC No. 16717) – (10 Counts) Felony Sexual Exploitation of a Minor/Child Pornography (Dangerous Crimes Against Children) – Dismissed (Due to Possibility of ex-girlfriend Planting Evidence) – Maricopa County Superior Court (Case No. CR2018-002817)
Mr. M was dating a young lady who had a teenaged daughter, who did not want Mr. M to marry her mom. Various problems began in the relationship, and they were headed to the point of breaking up, with her and her daughter moving out. It was at this time the girlfriend went to the Buckeye Police Department and told them that she had known Mr. M for 20 years, but had been dating for the last 4, and that she just happened to be on Mr. M’s personal laptop when she saw images of Child Pornography.
She stated that after she saw this, she logged into his email, and found he had a link attached to a website, which she then downloaded. In essence, she downloaded Child Pornography onto Mr. M’s personal laptop. She also provided Detectives with four different sites and usernames she claimed she found on Mr. M’s laptop.
After a Swat Team raided Mr. M’s house, and Arrested him after he was getting out of the shower, they interrogated him for hours and made various accusations. At one point, Mr. M succumbed to pressure and admitted he may have made a conscious decision to order Child Pornography, along with the Adult Pornography that he subscribed to. His ex-girlfriend also accused him of Molesting his own children, which he denied.
After Mr. M was charged with 10 counts of Felony Sexual Exploitation of a Minor/Child Pornography, he procured the services of DM Cantor. We had our Forensic Expert do extensive searches on his computer, and we also ran background checks on his ex-girlfriend. We then sat down with the Prosecutor and explained that any admissions he made, was due to the fact that he was being pressured by Detectives to admit to the “possibility” of downloading Child Pornography. There were also other equivocal admissions. After our meeting, the Prosecutor agreed to Dismiss all Charges against Mr. M. Originally, Mr. M was facing 100 years Minimum, and 240 years Maximum in Prison. Even though the Prosecutor then Reduced the offer to include 12 to 20 years in Prison, and later Reduced it further to only 5 years in Prison, Mr. M maintained his Innocence the entire time. He now has a Clean Criminal Record, and is a free man today.