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On Thursday, June 14, 2012, attorney Max Keller of Keller Criminal Defense Attorneys argued a possession and distribution child pornography appeal case at the Minnesota Court of Appeals. The case involves a number of issues specific to this client but not of statewide importance, such as sentencing issues and sufficiency of the evidence issues. Two issues argued are of statewide importance and involve the constitutionality of Minnesota’s pornography statutes. The judges focused on one particular issue, that of whether Minnesota’s possession of child pornography and dissemination of child pornography statutes are unconstitutional, because the statutes are “strict liability” statutes meaning that a person can be convicted for possessing illegal images even though he had no intent to do so.
Facing a charge of possessing, distribution, receiving, or producing child pornographyis a scary proposition. Not only do child pornography charges carry the possibility of long prison sentences and registration as a predatory offender, but even being charged with anything related to child pornography results in a serious social stigma against you.
While many people in Minneapolis may think that longer and more frequent prison sentences will be an important deterrence to anyone convicted of a crime, they would be wrong. According to the PEW Center on the States, longer prison sentences do little curb non-violent offenders from getting in trouble with the law again. That means sending someone who was convicted of marijuana possession to prison for several years isn’t going to help him or her break a drug habit and he or she may just be back before a judge in a few years’ time.
This week, charges against a Texas woman resulted in national media coverage. The woman in Texas was charged in Federal Court with possession, receipt, and distribution of child pornography. Women have been charged with Federal child pornography offenses much less frequently than men, meaning this story was already likely to receive some media attention. What drove this story towards increased media coverage was the status of the woman’s husband.
New Vikings fullback Jerome Felton was recently arrested after police say he was drunk driving. He was arrested in Eden Prairie on suspicion of driving while under the influence of alcohol while sitting outside of an Eden Prairie McDonald’s. Prosecutors plan on charging one of the Vikings’ newest additions with second-degree driving while impaired and third-degree driving while impaired because of a prior drunk driving conviction. He may also face charges for careless driving.
In a recent survey reported in the Star Tribune newspaper, at least half of all teens surveyed said that they text while driving. We all know that teenage drivers are not the safest, because, for among others reasons, they are reckless, inexperienced, and believe they are invincible and can live forever. To put an exclamation point on the problem, a Massachusetts teenager 18 years old was just sentenced to one year in prison for texting while driving causing the death of another driver. Under Minnesota law, that is a felony called Criminal Vehicular Operation (Homicide). And unfortunately, most of us are guilty of texting while driving, we just haven’t hurt or killed anyone (yet). If you OR someone you know has been charged with a crime for Minnesota distracted driving, like Criminal Vehicular Operation or Criminal Vehicular Homicide, or DWI, or texting while driving, then you need a Tough, Experienced Minnesota Criminal Defense and Distracted Driving Attorney to keep you out of Jail now.
The sex crimes trial of Jerry Sandusky , ex Penn-State Football coach, will be starting soon in Pennsylvania. But before trial, the first thing he had to do was make bail. How does bail work in Minnesota sex crimes cases? A Minnesota bail hearing is one of the most important hearings in your Minnesota criminal case. At your first court appearance, a Judge will determine what amount of bail and/or other Minnesota conditions of release (like alcohol or drug monitoring) to impose upon you. You must post the amount of bail (in cash or through a Bail Bondsman) ordered by the Judge in order to be released from custody.
Vikings fans in Minneapolis may remember Michael Bennett, the Vikings first-round draft choice in 2001. For five years, Bennett entertained fans as a running back, but now he is the subject of a federal investigation on identity theft. Though police have said that he’s confessed to his criminal charges, it is not entirely clear that he had a chance to speak to his attorney before talking with police.
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