There are a number of statutes in California that deal with child pornography. The legislature has concluded that punishing individuals who create, send, exchange, possess, or advertise child pornography is a top priority. As a result, if you are charged with a crime involving child pornography, you may face serious repercussions.
Potential penalties for violating California’s child pornography statutes
Violations of California’s child pornography statutes can result in a variety of penalties. The severity of the punishment is primarily determined by the legislation that you are accused of breaking. A misdemeanor conviction for child pornography, for example, carries a potential sentence of one year in county prison and a fine of up to $2,000. A felony conviction can result in a state jail term of up to eight years and a fine of up to $100,000.
If you are convicted of any degree of child pornography violation in California, you will be compelled to register as a sex offender for the rest of your life, regardless of the sort of conduct you are accused of committing.
Defining child pornography
Child pornography is defined as any substance or content displaying sexual activity by a person under the age of 18. Film or filmstrips, pictures, negatives or slides, photocopies, videotapes, CD-ROMs, data storage devices, or computer-generated visuals are examples of matter or material. Child pornography is more likely to be kept digitally on computers, smart phones, and tablets, and sent via the internet in today’s world.
To be guilty of a child pornography charge, you must have knowledge in most cases. A person must be both aware of the nature of the material in question and aware that the material depicted a person under the age of 18 engaging in sexual activity.
Producing and distributing child pornography is prohibited in California. That is, it is prohibited to transmit it into the state, bring it into the state, hold it, create, publish, or generate it, or develop, replicate, or print it. Individuals face greater penalties if the content in issue is considered “obscene,” if it is meant for commercial distribution, or if it was intended to be exposed to a person under the age of 18.
California law also makes mere possession of child pornography illegal. As long as the materials were created with a person under the age of 18, knowingly possessing or controlling child pornography can result in criminal penalties. It would not be a criminal violation if a defendant in a criminal case possessed drawings depicting kids engaging in sexual conduct. It is not illegal because no actual children were engaged in the creation of the content.
Given the societal stigma and high punishments involved with these crimes, defending against child pornography allegations can be difficult. These allegations, however, may be defended in a variety of ways. You may have been duped into downloading child pornography, or you may have been wrongly accused. It’s also possible that you lacked the necessary knowledge of the content. Working with a tenacious Orange County criminal defense attorney can assist you fight these allegations.
