Sending or receiving child pornography over the Internet is considered a serious federal crime. Federal investigations into the possession, production or distribution of child pornography often involve several different federal agencies, bringing the full force and resources of the federal government down on an individual. That does not necessarily mean, however, that the target of the investigation has done anything wrong.

On March 18th, a young married couple from Reading Township discovered they had been the target of just such a federal investigation. The couple, both in their early thirties, were arrested on child pornography charges -- a highly unusual situation, far removed from the more familiar image of a lone criminal on the fringes of society.

The federal government has accused the couple of sending pornographic images of their own infant child to a person in Canada. The husband is also accused of trading child pornography with the Canadian. The U.S. Attorney's Office, however, has refused to release any details about the indictment.

Over the years, a number of people have been falsely accused of child pornography when they have taken pictures of their own children in bathtubs or running around the house joyously naked. As activities such as bathing and naked play are normal parts of childhood and not child exploitation, taking photographs of those events would not appear to constitute production of child pornography.

At their pre-trial detention hearing, the couple pled not guilty. Both husband and wife were put behind bars and are currently being held in the Adams County Prison in Gettysburg, awaiting trial for a crime they say they did not commit.

The allegations stem from the arrest of the Canadian on child pornography charges in connection with the alleged trading of images with the Reading Township man. A federal investigation was launched into the allegations, which involved agents from the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, the FBI, the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement service, the Pennsylvania State Police and the Adams County Sheriff's Office.

If convicted, the wife could face a mandatory minimum of 15 years behind bars, while the accused husband would face a mandatory minimum of 25 years in federal prison. These are very serious criminal charges to levy in a situation that might not even involve any criminal activity at all.

In some cases, criminal charges are brought in order to promote a certain social agenda. In others, computer evidence may have been gathered under questionable circumstances, or pornographic images may have been uploaded to the defendant's computer without his or her knowledge. Anyone facing federal child pornography charges needs an experienced criminal defense lawyer to fully investigate all of the possibilities and present a strong defense.

Source: York Daily Record, "New Oxford couple accused of taking pornographic photos of infant," Ted Czech and Rebecca LeFever, March 25, 2011