GRAND RAPIDS, MI — A judge has decided that charges of producing child pornography thrown out by a lower court judge should be reinstated against a 17-year-old Catholic high school honor student.
In a hearing Friday, May 29, Kent County Circuit Court Judge Mark Trusock ruled in favor of the prosecution that teen Matthew Herrington potentially violated the law when he allegedly downloaded more than 133 images of child pornography.
In a Grand Rapids District Court hearing from March, defense attorney Anthony Greene convinced Judge Jeanine LaVille that because his client never moved the images from his hard drive to another medium – such as a CD or flash drive – he was at most guilty of possession of child sexually abusive material. The difference is that possession carries a maximum prison sentence of four years, while production carries a maximum sentence of 20 years. Full Article