Attorneys who prosecute possession of child pornography in Florida have certain reporting obligations as well. Specifically, the prosecution must provide the following information to the Office of the Attorney General:
- The case number and police agency file number.
- The name of the accused.
- The county and circuit court division where the case is being prosecuted.
- The prosecutor’s contact information.
- Confirmation that the prosecution has a victim impact statement and that the statement will be used should the defendant ever be sentenced.
Like a criminal investigator’s duty to report, the prosecution’s duty is derived from Florida Statute 847.002. The purpose of these rules are twofold. First, the State of Florida wants to be as diligent as possible when it comes to investigating offenses involving possession of child pornography and distribution of child pornography. By keeping track of victims and where the images pop up, law enforcement is able to prosecute these offenses more effectively.
This is the same reason why the prosecution must make sure a victim impact statement is filled out and used if the defendant is ever sentenced. For those who may not be familiar, a victim impact statement is nothing more than a statement taken from the victim to ascertain their feelings about the case.
The State Attorney’s Office maintains a special unit of non-attorney employees who are designated as victim advocates. Their job is to make contact with the victims in each case and act as a liaison between the prosecutors and the victim.
Part of this job includes advising the victim of their rights and ascertaining what they want to see happen with the case.
- Does the victim want the defendant to go to prison?
- How long does the victim want the defendant to go to prison?
- Is the victim owed any restitution?
- How has the offense in question affected the victim?
- Does the victim wish to be present during the litigation of the case?
- Does the victim want to address the court?
In Florida, victims of crime are given certain rights. These include the right to be present at any material stage of the case, to be heard, and to be informed. The prosecution is the party who is tasked with making sure those rights are enforced.
Search and Seizure in Possession of Child Pornography Cases
Possession of child pornography cases would usually never come to light without a police search and seizure of an accused person’s private property. In America, it is absolutely illegal for police to enter a person’s private area, where he/she has an expectation of privacy, and conduct a random search for illegal activity. Whether this activity concerns drug abuse, child pornography, or other illegal conduct, the police are not allowed to enter a private domain and conduct a random search for law enforcement purposes.
However, this changes under two conditions. The first exception is called “exigent circumstances.” When there is exigency, law enforcement is allowed to enter private property. An example of exigency would be a life or death scenario.
For example, police may respond to a fire alarm going off in a residence. Fearing that human life may be in danger, the police would have the right to enter the home to search for people to save them. If police discovered child pornography during this search, the police would be allowed to collect the evidence and prosecute the person who possessed it.
While exigent circumstances do permit a governmental intrusion under certain limited instances, it is not a carte blanche to search without restraint. For example, there would be no reason why the police would need to search a computer or file cabinet when responding to a fire alarm. Clearly any such search would exceed the scope permitted by law.
For this reason, a criminal defense lawyer representing a person accused of possession of child pornography, must first determine how the police came to discover the child pornography. If the images/videos were discovered during a warrantless search based on exigent circumstances, a criminal lawyer must then determine if the discovery was made within or outside the scope of the permitted search.