Former FWC Officer Wrongfully Accused Of Child Porn Crimes

Sometimes law enforcement departments get it wrong. They accuse people of crimes they did not do. This is a serious situation. It’s not as easy as blaming someone for something and then apologizing. Being wrongfully accused of a crime can cause a person to suffer damage to their reputation. They may lose the trust of their loved ones. They may even lose their job.

A former Florida Fish & Wildlife Conservation Commission officer was wrongfully accused of child porn possession last year. He is now filing a lawsuit against multiple entities, including the St. Johns County Sheriff’s office, the University of Florida Child Protection Team, and Verizon.

In April 2023, the man was charged with three charges of possession of a sexual performance by a child. Those charges were dropped on December 27.

The man had been with the Fish & Wildlife Conservation Commission since 2008 and was recognized as Officer of the Year in 2014. He lost his job due to the allegations.

According to the lawsuit, the man’s reputation and career were destroyed by the false allegations. Verizon and cloud company Synchronoss Technologies allegedly incorrectly identified child sexual abuse material and distributed the man’s private information to other entities.

The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children received a cybertip from an algorithm, which was the issue. The images in question had a watermark from a website that requires verified ages from models. The consenting model had a verified age over 18, so the images were definitely not child porn.

However, the images were still reported to law enforcement, which raises concerns about how algorithms and artificial intelligence can incorrectly report cyber crimes.

The sheriff’s office caught wind of the situation and sought out the University of Florida Child Protection Team, who said the model appeared to be younger than the age of 18. They used the Tanner Scale, which is a clinical scale that measures physical development of children. The lawsuit alleges that the Tanner Scale was not used properly and is not a method for determining a person’s age.

False Accusations

Being falsely accused of committing a crime can be devastating. Being accused of a crime such as child porn can take a physical and emotional toll on a person. After being falsely accused, your natural response will likely be to fight back and defend yourself. However, acting in an angry and rash manner can do more harm than good.

If you are facing false accusations, hire an attorney right away. They can help you gather evidence. They will also have strategies to help you defend yourself and get you the best outcome possible, which is getting your charges dropped.

Seek Help for Your Criminal Defense Case

Just because a person has been arrested for a crime does not mean they actually committed it. A person should be considered innocent until proven guilty, and that definitely applies to the man in this case.

Have you been falsely arrested due to inaccurate information or evidence? If so, count on a Dade City & Zephyrhills criminal defense attorney from Madonna Law Group to set the record straight. We will work hard to help you avoid criminal charges. Schedule a consultation today by filling out the online form or calling (800) 557-0411.

Source:

firstcoastnews.com/article/news/crime/former-fwc-officer-has-charges-dropped-after-2023-child-porn-april-arrest/77-9b32972f-c0bb-487e-adf0-3736d7f4401f