A Polk County, Florida detention deputy was arrested for allegedly whipping two children between the ages of 10 and 18 on camera and distributing the material to another person. The 45-year-old deputy was arrested Thursday and charged with three counts each of aggravated child abuse, production of child pornography, promotion of child pornography and possession of child pornography.
The other person involved supposedly lives out of state and is currently being investigated.
According to deputies, the woman did not gain access to the children through her employment with the Polk County Sheriff’s Office.
The woman resigned Thursday morning instead of being fired. She was employed as a detention deputy for almost six years.
A very important aspect of any child pornography defense is whether the charges involved will be federal, state or even both. The U.S. government pours many hours and dollars into prosecuting those believed to be involved with the child porn industry, including production, distribution, promotion, possession, sales and internet trafficking. The state of Florida also devotes many resources such as time and money into child pornography cases.
Understanding child pornography laws on a federal and state level are crucial aspects to any child porn case. Child pornography charges carry very strict penalties and it is important to note that no sexual contact must transpire to face serious criminal penalties like time in prison and registration as a sex offender. Whether you are accused of having images of child porn on your computer or sharing these images to others in any way, each photo found can be a separate charge and punished as a separate crime. The punishments are increased when more than 300 images are linked to you and the sentencing range increases further when more than 600 images are in question.
If you have been charged with producing, promoting or possessing child pornography in the state of Florida, contact the Florida Sex Crimes Defense Lawyers online or call 866-608-5529.