A prominent “victim” of broad federal child porn law OR just another sex offender?
Regular readers know I have blogged a lot about federal child porn prosecutions and sentencing. Now a notable new case out of California, reported widely through local press and via CNN and the AP, seems to have the potential to raise the profile of these issues. The reporting on this case varies based on the media source, but reports here and here from the San Diego Union Tribune highlight why this case has the potential to draw lots of attention:
A San Diego veterans activist and Vietnam War hero who served in a senior Navy post during the Clinton administration pleaded guilty yesterday to a federal charge of possessing child pornography. Wade Rowland Sanders, 67, acknowledged in federal court in San Diego that last May, he possessed computer files containing 600 images of minors, including a 21-minute video that depicted girls engaging in sex acts with an adult man, according to court records….
In a telephone interview last night, Sanders said he had downloaded the files as part of his research for an article on the sexual exploitation of children in foreign countries. He said his work for the Clinton administration had included aiding victims of child sex abuse in the former Yugoslavia. “I have no sexual attraction to children whatsoever,” Sanders said. “There was no evil intent.”
Sanders, a lawyer, said he didn’t realize federal child pornography laws barred downloading or viewing the material even by researchers. He said that is why he decided to plead guilty. “I thought since my motives were pure and innocent, that would make a difference,” he said. “I’m technically guilty of the crime.”
Sanders pleaded guilty to one felony charge of possession of images of minors engaged in sexually explicit conduct. A judge scheduled sentencing for March 30. Sanders faces a maximum of 10 years in prison but could receive far less time. He also could be fined $250,000 and be required to register as a sex offender.
Sanders, a retired Naval Reserve captain, earned a Silver Star, Bronze Star and Purple Heart while serving aboard Swift boats during the Vietnam War. He served from 1993 to 1997 as deputy assistant secretary of the Navy for reserve affairs under Clinton. Since last year, he had been a senior adviser on military and veterans affairs for California Lt. Gov. John Garamendi until resigning Nov. 8. Sanders had served with Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass., in Vietnam, and had been among the senator’s most vocal defenders when some veterans questioned Kerry’s military record during his 2004 presidential run.
The investigation into Sanders began in October 2007, according to a statement filed in the case by San Diego FBI agent John Caruthers…. On May 2, 2008, agents executed a search warrant at Sanders’ home and seized his computer. During the search, Sanders admitted he had downloaded child pornography using the file-sharing program, but said he deleted the files once he noticed they were downloaded, according to the FBI statement. He also denied “any inappropriate contact with children,” Caruthers wrote. The FBI searched the computer and found “multiple videos depicting child pornography” saved on the hard drive…. The prosecutor, Assistant U.S. Attorney Alessandra Serrano, could not be reached for comment yesterday.
Sanders said he believes he is a victim of zealous prosectors. “I got caught in the net,” he said. “I’m not the kind of person they were after.”
Regular readers may recall another recent case of a prominent Californian failing to avoid a long federal prison term by claiming he was just doing research when downloading. As detailed here, Bernie Ward, a prominent San Francisco radio talk show host, got seven years in federal prison for distributing child porn as part of what he called “a research project.” For this reason and others, I am always a bit suspicious of defendants who claim “research downloading” while still pleading guilty to charges that regularly result in very long prison sentences even for first offenders.
Notably, this CNN report includes a sentence stating that the “minimum sentence for the charge is five years with supervised release for his lifetime and registration as a sex offender, the prosecutor said.” But this short story in the Los Angeles Times asserts that “[u]nder a plea bargain, prosecutors have agreed to recommend a prison sentence of five to six years.” Though these press reports may not be fully accurate, they certainly suggest that prosecutors did not believe Sanders’ various claims about being a largely innocent downloader.
Some related recent federal child porn prosecution and sentencing posts: