Virginia Child Pornography Laws Maryland Internet Fairfax Loudoun

CHILD PORNOGRAPHY LAWYERS & INTERNET SEX CRIMES DEFENSE ATTORNEYS

Defending Cybercrime Sex Charges In Virginia & Maryland

In Maryland and Virginia, the production, possession, and distribution of child pornography are three separate felony charges. Sentences upon conviction for possessing pornographic images of children are some of the cruelest in the country and can result in jail, fines, a criminal record, and sex offender registration.

Maryland and Virginia law defines child pornography as sexually overt material that is visual and that utilizes a minor or has an identifiable minor as the subject. At the time of the delineation, the child must be a minor, which is defined as under 18 years old, and an actual person. Visual material is liberally defined to include sculptures, photographs, movies, and digital depictions such as images or videos on a computer or other digital devices and undeveloped film.

It is relatively rare in this day to see a case in which child pornography charges are made based on hard copy images or video tapes. It is our experience and perception that it is mostly through the Internet, through what is commonly referred to as peer-to-peer networking software or sharing software. There are many different types of software, but they all basically work the same. Importantly, a lot of that sharing is actually free. That is something that we think is more of a recent development due to the Internet. The sharing of the images for free is easy nowadays, but this will be something that people would be willing to pay money for and the supplier would demand in the past.

This means that the crime of production occurs whether or not the victim agrees or goes through with the act. So, a teenager, who asks a girl to let him take a dirty photo, has committed a felony production of child pornography in Virginia whether or not the girl agrees. In some cases, people seek to profit from sharing child pornography over the Internet by creating websites for this purpose. Those who operate this type of website in Virginia and take payments from others to distribute pornographic materials featuring children may be found guilty of a Class 4 felony. This is particularly dangerous because many of these kids are asking for dirty photos of each other over the Internet via chat rooms, e-mail, or text where there is written proof of their crime that any police officer can simply print it off and bring to court.

Child pornography in Virginia and Maryland means sexually explicit visual material, which utilizes or has, as a subject, an identifiable minor. An identifiable minor is a person who was a minor at the time the visual depiction was created, modified or adapted; or whose image as a minor was used in creating, adapting or modifying the visual depiction; and who is noticeable as an actual person by the person’s face, likeness, or other distinguishing characteristics such as a unique birthmark or other recognizable feature, and shall not be construed to require proof of the actual identity of the identifiable minor.

If you need the help of a child pornography lawyer in Virginia in Fairfax, City of Fairfax, Prince William (Manassas), Fauquier (Warrenton), Loudoun (Leesburg), Caroline, Stafford, Spotsylvania (Fredericksburg), Chesterfield, Henrico, Arlington, Richmond, Alexandria, Warren (Front Royal), Clarke, Shenandoah, King George, Charles City, Frederick (Winchester), Fredericksburg, Gloucester, Hanover, Hopewell, James City, King & Queen, King William, New Kent, Newport News, Petersburg, Prince George, Rappahannock, York, call our law firm immediately for help and speak to a lawyer about your options. If you need the help of a Maryland child pornography lawyer in Montgomery County, Charles County (Waldorf), Rockville, Bethesda, Howard County, Baltimore County, City of Baltimore, Anne Arundel County (Annapolis), Ellicott City or Frederick, do not hesitate to call us for a consultation..

If you wish to consult an SRIS Law Group, P.C. Maryland/Virginia child pornography defense attorney, call us at 855-696-3348.

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