Promotion of Child Pornography
Buying and possessing child pornography is illegal in the United States. Promoting, which includes selling and distributing child pornography, is also illegal and is a felony offense.
In the following article, we’ll go over the requirements necessary to prove a person guilty of promoting child pornography and the penalties for doing so.
Austin Child Pornography Promotion Defense Attorney
Child pornography charges are life-changing. If you have been charged with possessing or promoting child pornography, you should prepare to experience social stigma and a strong fight from the prosecution.
To meet these charges, you need a fierce defense attorney like Kevin Bennett. The attorneys at the Law Office of Kevin Bennett are experienced in defending against child pornography charges and are ready to provide the legal representation that you need.
If you or a loved one have been charged with promoting child pornography, then contact The Law Office of Kevin Bennett today to discuss your options for protecting your future in West Lake Hills, Austin, Rollingwood, Travis County, Sunset Valley, Pflugerville, Lago Vista, Lakeway and the surrounding areas.
Call The Law Office of Kevin Bennett today at (512) 476-4626 to schedule a consultation on.
- Understanding Promotion vs. Possession
- Penalties for Promoting Child Pornography
- Defenses for Promoting Child Pornography
- Additional Resources
- Hire a Promotion of Child Pornography Lawyer in Austin, Texas
What is Promotion of Child Pornography?
Child pornography is any video, picture or writing that involves a person under the age of 18 in a sexually explicit manner. Possessing, purchasing, or attempting to access child pornography is a felony offense in the state of Texas, and a federal crime.
Promotion of child pornography is also a crime. In this context, promotion refers to the spread of child pornography. It entails any of the following:
- Procuring
- Manufacturing
- Issuing
- Selling
- Giving
- Providing
- Lending
- Mailing
- Delivering
- Transferring
- Transmitting
- Publishing
- Distributing
- Disseminating
- Presenting
- Exhibiting
- Or advertising child pornography.
Any of the above actions is enough to qualify for charges under Texas Penal Code 43.26, promotion of child pornography.
Proving that you were in possession of child pornography and that you willingly or recklessly distributed it generally relies on digital evidence, but not always. This can include a forensic investigation into your computer, tracing your contact with a piece of pornographic material back to your home address via the internet, or video evidence of you selling physical pornographic media to another person.
Penalties for Promotion of Child Pornography
Promotion or possession with the intent to promote child pornography is a second-degree felony, or a first-degree felony if the defendant has a prior conviction for the same crime.
Second-degree felonies are punishable by:
- Imprisonment of 2 to 20 years
- A fine of up to $10,000
First-degree felonies are punishable by:
- Imprisonment of 5 to 99 years
- A fine of up to $10,000
Collateral Consequences
If you are charged or found guilty of promoting child pornography, then it is likely that you will be placed on the Sex Offender Registry. Placement on the Sex Offender Registry will lead to difficulty in finding employment and housing as well as social stigma.
In addition, you will be placed under increased scrutiny and may be subject to targeting from law enforcement if a sexual crime occurs nearby.
Defenses for Promotion of Child Pornography
Any defense for child pornography promotion charges will focus on refuting the digital evidence found by the prosecution. This can include:
- Acknowledging that the pornography may have been present on your computer, but you had no knowledge. This defense may apply if you share the computer with another person, or if a third party is using your computer as a touch point in the transmittal of pornography.
- Arguing that you had no knowledge of the child pornography. In some rare cases, child pornography may be embedded in certain files downloaded online, or included in packs of pornographic pictures. If you shared or uploaded these pictures with another person, then you may argue ignorance.
- Arguing that you did not have knowledge that the images you shared were of an underage person. If you are a photographer who took photos of a person you reasonably believed to be 18 years of age, you may be charged with promotion of child pornography. Your lawyer may use this attempt to verify, as well as ignorance of the age of pornographic pictures within reason, as a defense.
Additional Resources
How to Report Child Porn – The office of the Texas Attorney General offers a guide on safe internet use. The guide includes cyberbullying, what to do if you see child pornography and other information related to online child exploitation.
Child sexual exploitation CyberTipline – The National Center for Missing & Exploited Children runs a tip line to accumulate claims of online exploitative behavior. The webpage offers anonymous online tipping and a direct line to speak over the phone.
Hire a Promotion of Child Pornography Defense Attorney in Austin, Texas
If you or a loved one have been charged with promoting child pornography, then contact The Law Office of Kevin Bennett today to discuss your options for protecting your future in West Lake Hills, Austin, Rollingwood, Travis County, Sunset Valley, Pflugerville, Lago Vista, Lakeway and the surrounding areas.
Call The Law Office of Kevin Bennett today at (512) 476-4626 to schedule a consultation on.
