While all sex crimes are treated very seriously in Arizona, child pornography crimes are among the most serious crimes you can be charged with in Arizona. In addition to carrying lengthy prison sentences, a conviction for child pornography crimes is frequently stigmatizing and can result in irrevocable damage to your personal and professional reputation.
Located in Phoenix, Mesa, Tempe, Chandler, and elsewhere in Arizona, the attorneys at Arizona Lawyers believe that everyone is innocent until proven guilty. We have experience defending clients against child pornography charges, and are knowledgeable in the applicable laws and defenses. We understand the severe impact a child pornography conviction can have upon your life and will fight to defend you to the fullest extent under the law.
Arizona Child Pornography Laws
Under Arizona law, child pornography, also known as child sexual exploitation or sexual exploitation of a minor, is broadly defined such that a wide range of activities can count as child pornography. Arizona law prohibits “recording, filming, photographing, developing, or duplicating any visual depiction in which a minor is engaged in exploitative exhibition or other sexual conduct.” Arizona law also prohibits “distributing, transporting, exhibiting, receiving, selling, purchasing, electronically transmitting, possessing or exchanging any visual depiction in which a minor is engaged in exploitative exhibition or other sexual conduct.”
This broad statue covers a wide array of innocent conduct, meaning there are a number of ways a person can be wrongly accused of child pornography. The attorneys at Arizona Lawyers are knowledgeable about the many different interpretations of Arizona’s child pornography law and are ready to use this knowledge to build your successful defense.
Arizona Child Pornography Penalties
The legal consequences of being convicted of child pornography charges in Arizona are severe. In fact, Arizona has some of the strongest penalties for child pornography in the country. Child pornography is a Class 2 felony in Arizona, and if you are convicted of possessing pornographic images of minors under the age of 15 you face a minimum of 10 years in prison for each image you possess. Further, the minimum sentence for child pornography increases if you have previously been convicted for the offense. Additionally, Arizona courts can impose up to $150,000 in fines per image, and there is no possibility of parole or early release.
The penalties do not stop once you finish serving your sentence. A conviction for child pornography in Arizona means you must register as a sex offender for the rest of your life. This will impact where you can live, the jobs you can hold, and also means you will be under strict supervised probation upon release. It may even mean you are required to wear an electronic location monitoring device. Further, because child pornography is an extremely stigmatizing offense, your personal and professional interactions will likely suffer for the rest of your life.
The potential consequences of a child pornography conviction are tremendous and long-lasting.
The attorneys at Arizona Lawyers understand how much is at stake with a child pornography charge, and will give your case the attention and effort it deserves.
Defending Against Arizona Child Pornography Charges
Under Arizona law, you can only be convicted of child pornography if you “knowingly” record, film, photograph, or do any of the other behaviors listed in the Arizona statute. One of the most effective ways to defend against a child pornography charge is to show that the accused person did not act knowingly. The attorneys at Arizona Lawyers can identify evidence showing that you did not intend to download or access pornographic images, or that multiple individuals had access to your computer making it unclear who downloaded the images.
Other ways to defend against child pornography charges involve challenging whether law enforcement violated your constitutional rights when they obtained evidence against you. The Fifth and Sixth Amendments guarantee you the right to remain silent and the right to an attorney under certain circumstances. If police coerced an incriminating statement or confession out of you in violation of your rights, the skilled litigators at Arizona Lawyers will challenge the admission of that evidence against you in court.
Finally, the attorneys at Arizona Lawyers are experienced in determining whether evidence obtained against you was handled improperly or tainted by law enforcement. If this is the case, we will strongly object to the admission of this evidence against you in court.
Federal Child Pornography Laws
Child pornography is also a federal crime, meaning that you can potentially face trial and penalties at both the state and federal level if the child pornography you are alleged to have possessed, produced, distributed, etc., crossed state lines in any capacity, such as online or via email. There are a number of different federal statutes you can be charged under pertaining to producing, selling, buying, distributing, possessing, consuming, or storing child pornography, and even a first time offense can carry a mandatory minimum of 15 years in prison as well as fines.
If you are charged with child pornography under Arizona state laws, you may also be facing federal charges. It is important you have an experienced Arizona criminal defense attorney who is knowledgeable both about the state and federal laws to ensure your legal defense strategy protects you to the fullest extent. At Arizona Lawyers, we are familiar with Arizona and federal child pornography statutes and have defended clients against both kinds of charges.
Charged With Child Pornography in Arizona?
If you have been arrested for, or charged with, child pornography in Phoenix, Mesa, Tempe, Chandler, or elsewhere in Arizona, do not wait to contact an experienced criminal defense attorney. The attorneys at Arizona Lawyers understand the serious implications a child pornography conviction can have upon the rest of your life, and will use their litigation experience and legal knowledge to aggressively defend you from these charges. Contact us today.