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I found a video on my husbands phone (my childrens step father)

 
JD 1992's Avatar
  • Answered by:JD 1992
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Customer Question

I found a video on my husband's phone (my children's step father) of my 11 year old daughter. She was sleeping, he pulled back the covers to expose her rear end and exposed his privates on the video within inches of her. Upon further investigation I located his ipod containing 820 images of young girls, both regular and pornographic. I immediately told him to leave, kept his phone and ipod. What should my next step be? Being that she was not aware because she was sleeping and he didnt actually touch her, only her blanket, could it be considered criminal? And what do I have to do to get a divorce int he state of Maine?

 

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Country relating to Question: United States
State (if USA): Maine

Already Tried:
This only happened a few hours ago. I kept the evidence (his phone and ipod with the video and images) told him to leave, and contacted my parents for support.

Submitted: 353 days and 5 hours ago.
Category: Legal
Value: $43
Status: CLOSED
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Expert:  JD 1992 replied353 days and 4 hours ago.

What do you want to accomplish?

Customer replied353 days and 4 hours ago.

I need to know if I have legal options to pressing charges. Is it a crime? Should I seek a restraining order? I have no intention of letting him back in the house but I want to ensure that this happens to no one else and ensure that he seeks the counseling that he needs. He obviously will not seek help on his own. He is a vet and recently returned from Iraq. We will have been married a year on July 16th

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Expert:  JD 1992 replied353 days and 4 hours ago.

Possession of child pornography is definitely a crime and the fact that you know the iPod and the phone contain the images makes it a crime for you to have them.

However, it is EXTREMELY serious and if you report it then you can expect him to be arrested and taken to jail, then likely eventually convicted and have to register as a sex offender for life. You need to be aware of all the consequences before moving forward.

You should definitely seek a restraining order as well to keep him from being around the children unsupervised. The court can also require him to have to get counseling. You need to contact your lawyer ASAP.


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Customer replied353 days and 4 hours ago.

So what do I do with the phone and ipod prior to seeking a lawyer? No one is open until Monday. He has just contacted me and stated that he is personally seeking mental health assistance from the VA on Monday. I just needed to know if I have a legal leg to stand on.


 

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Expert:  JD 1992 replied353 days and 4 hours ago.

There isn't much you can do and realistically nothing will probably happen before Monday. When you go to the lawyer's office Monday take the devices with you and leave them with the lawyer.

If you would like any additional information or have more questions please don’t hesitate to ask but please do so my clicking on the Reply to Expert tab.

We work for Positive Ratings, please click on one of the top three ratings or one of the Smile Faces, as this would be appreciated. We have recently implemented a new rating and feedback system. Please be aware that you are rating my courtesy and service as a professional, and not necessarily whether you like the information that you are receiving. Please bear in mind I can’t control what the law is and whether it helps you, I can only tell you what it says, and I assume you want truthful information.

PLEASE DO NOT use the rating system to ask for more information or in an attempt to tell the website that you didn’t like the substance of the answer as it gives a NEGATIVE rating to me personally if your rating is one of the lower two.

I believe in giving information that is to the point, but please remember that I can only base our answers on the information you provide and sometimes a misunderstanding as to what you are looking for or already know occurs so feel free to ask additional questions or for clarifications. Be very careful about looking at other internet sites that just post generic information without any inquiry into your facts because often those answers are dated, wrong, or wrong as applied to your facts. Please be aware that my answer is not legal advice, it is merely information. You should always contact a local attorney for legal advice.

Several customers have asked how they direct a question to me in particular. If you specifically want me to provide information for you just put “FOR JD 1992” in the subject line and I will pick up the next time I am online.

Customer replied353 days and 4 hours ago.

Will the video be considered a crime? It was disturbing. but he didnt touch her, exposed himself and she had her underwear on.

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Expert:  JD 1992 replied353 days and 4 hours ago.

Yes. Under those circumstances it would likely be considered a crime although it could have, of course, been much, much worse.


If you would like any additional information or have more questions please don’t hesitate to ask but please do so my clicking on the Reply to Expert tab.

We work for Positive Ratings, please click on one of the top three ratings or one of the Smile Faces, as this would be appreciated. We have recently implemented a new rating and feedback system. Please be aware that you are rating my courtesy and service as a professional, and not necessarily whether you like the information that you are receiving. Please bear in mind I can’t control what the law is and whether it helps you, I can only tell you what it says, and I assume you want truthful information.

PLEASE DO NOT use the rating system to ask for more information or in an attempt to tell the website that you didn’t like the substance of the answer as it gives a NEGATIVE rating to me personally if your rating is one of the lower two.

I believe in giving information that is to the point, but please remember that I can only base our answers on the information you provide and sometimes a misunderstanding as to what you are looking for or already know occurs so feel free to ask additional questions or for clarifications. Be very careful about looking at other internet sites that just post generic information without any inquiry into your facts because often those answers are dated, wrong, or wrong as applied to your facts. Please be aware that my answer is not legal advice, it is merely information. You should always contact a local attorney for legal advice.

Several customers have asked how they direct a question to me in particular. If you specifically want me to provide information for you just put “FOR JD 1992” in the subject line and I will pick up the next time I am online.

Customer replied353 days and 4 hours ago.

Should I still pursue the lawyer or go directly to the police and press charges. He says he is admitting himself to the VA mental health facility on Monday. I loved this man and being that this all went down a few hours ago, I am still not in my right mind. Between sobbing and hugging my daughter I can barely think. I will bag up the "evidence" and bring it to a lawyer monday I guess and go from their advice. I am self employed and really cant afford a trial and a divorce at the same time.

Accepted Answer

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Expert:  JD 1992 replied353 days and 4 hours ago.

That is probably the best idea. Get your lawyer to assist you in how to work through this. He may be able to talk to the DA and get something worked out for your husband that works the best for everyone.


If you would like any additional information or have more questions please don’t hesitate to ask but please do so my clicking on the Reply to Expert tab.

We work for Positive Ratings, please click on one of the top three ratings or one of the Smile Faces, as this would be appreciated. We have recently implemented a new rating and feedback system. Please be aware that you are rating my courtesy and service as a professional, and not necessarily whether you like the information that you are receiving. Please bear in mind I can’t control what the law is and whether it helps you, I can only tell you what it says, and I assume you want truthful information.

PLEASE DO NOT use the rating system to ask for more information or in an attempt to tell the website that you didn’t like the substance of the answer as it gives a NEGATIVE rating to me personally if your rating is one of the lower two.

I believe in giving information that is to the point, but please remember that I can only base our answers on the information you provide and sometimes a misunderstanding as to what you are looking for or already know occurs so feel free to ask additional questions or for clarifications. Be very careful about looking at other internet sites that just post generic information without any inquiry into your facts because often those answers are dated, wrong, or wrong as applied to your facts. Please be aware that my answer is not legal advice, it is merely information. You should always contact a local attorney for legal advice.

Several customers have asked how they direct a question to me in particular. If you specifically want me to provide information for you just put “FOR JD 1992” in the subject line and I will pick up the next time I am online.

Expert TypeAttorney
Category: Legal
Pos. Feedback: 97.7 %
Accepts: 11511
Answered: 6/30/2012

Experience: Began practicing law in 1992

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