Judge
acquits porn suspect
By Gary V.
Murray TELEGRAM & GAZETTE STAFF
WORCESTER— An Oxford man charged with possessing child pornography has been
acquitted after a jury-waived trial.
Kelly Hoose, 34, formerly of Sturbridge, was found not guilty on four counts of
possessing child pornography Dec. 19 in Worcester Superior Court. The not-guilty
findings by Judge John S. McCann followed a two-day jury-waived trial, which
included testimony from an adult model depicted in some of the computer images
possessed by Mr. Hoose that prosecutors alleged were of children, according to
court records.
Mr. Hoose was charged after a police search of his home in 2003 that resulted in
the seizure of a computer. An examination of the computer’s hard drive revealed
more than 100 photographic images that police believed to be child pornography.
Sturbridge
police obtained the search warrant for Mr. Hoose’s apartment after receiving a
call from a staff analyst at the National Center for Missing and Exploited
Children in Alexandria, Va., according to court records. The agency
representative referred to a recorded telephone call made to the center’s “cyber
tip line” by a man who identified himself as Mr. Hoose, investigators said.
“Mr. Hoose called to advise the center that he intentionally downloaded child
pornography onto his computer from a Web site that he could not remember the
address of. Mr. Hoose further stated that he has other child pornography on his
computer and has been collecting the images for approximately six months,”
Detective Christopher Donais said in a police report read to the grand jury that
indicted Mr. Hoose.
But, Mr. Hoose said the purpose of the call was misconstrued by Detective Donais.
He said he had actually telephoned the Center for Missing and Exploited Children
to report the Web site because he believed people in the pornographic images he
was receiving to be underage.
Of the 110 images police said they retrieved from Mr. Hoose’s computer, 37 were
identified by Dr. Christine Barron, former director of the UMass Memorial
Medical Center’s Child Protection Program, as child pornography.
Mr. Hoose’s lawyer, James J. Kaeding, said in court filings that 34 of the 37
images carried a copyright indicating they were the property of ALS Scan Inc., a
Maryland company with a commercial Web site. Mr. Kaeding also said in an
affidavit that he provided prosecutors with a statement from ALS Scan indicating
it had records verifying that all of the models used in its images were at least
18 years old.
One of those models testified that she was 20 when she began working for ALS
Scan.
March 22, 2005
Doctor can be expert witness in child porn trial
Gary V.
Murray , Worcester Telegram & Gazette (MA)
WORCESTER - A doctor will be allowed to testify as an expert witness at the
trial of a Sturbridge man charged with possessing child pornography, a judge has
ruled.
James J. Kaeding, the lawyer for Kelly Hoose, sought to exclude the testimony of
Dr. Christine Barron, a pediatrician, that the females depicted in 37 visual
images recovered from Mr. Hoose's computer were younger than 18. Mr. Hoose, 32,
is awaiting trial in Worcester Superior Court on four counts of possessing child
pornography.
In a motion to exclude the testimony of Dr. Barron, the former director of the
UMass Memorial Medical Center's Child Protection Program, Mr. Kaeding challenged
her application of the so-called Tanner Scale to the photographic images in the
case. The Tanner Scale, developed in the 1960s and 1970s by two British
physicians, is designed to determine physiological development and the
developmental age of children based upon genital and breast development.
Mr. Kaeding alleged that Dr. Barron's use of the Tanner Scale to estimate the
chronological ages of individuals depicted in downloaded computer images did not
meet the minimum standards for expert testimony as defined in the applicable
case law. A hearing on the motion was held March 10.
Judge Francis R. Fecteau denied Mr. Kaeding's motion in a six-page ruling issued
Wednesday.
Judge Fecteau cited Dr. Barron's testimony at the March 10 hearing that she took
a "conservative" approach when viewing the 110 computer images shown to her and
that it was her belief the females depicted in the 37 images she chose were
actually no older than 13.
Referring to the language in a 2000 appellate court decision, Judge Fecteau said
the difference between the sexual development manifested by a 13-year-old and
that of an 18-year-old was "extreme" enough to permit the introduction of Dr.
Barron's testimony.
A trial date has not been set in Mr. Hoose's case.
January 28, 2005
Suspect says models not kids -
Subpoena OK'd in porn case
Author: Gary V. Murray, Worcester Telegram & Gazette (MA)
WORCESTER - The lawyer for a Sturbridge man charged with possession of child
pornography has received court approval to subpoena business records from a
Maryland company that runs a commercial Web site in an effort to show that the
females depicted in images allegedly found on his client's computer were adult
models.
On Jan. 17, 2003, state and Sturbridge police searched Apt. 4 at 2 Hinman St.,
Sturbridge, the home of Kelly Hoose, and seized a computer. An examination of
the hard drive found 110 photographic images that investigators believed to be
child pornography, according to Sturbridge Detective Christopher Donais'
testimony to a grand jury that indicted Mr. Hoose on four counts of possessing
child pornography.
Detective Donais told the grand jury he obtained a search warrant after
receiving a telephone call from a staff analyst at the National Center for
Missing and Exploited Children in Alexandria, Va. The caller, he said, reported
that about 1 a.m. Jan. 12, 2003, a call was placed to the center's "cyber tip
line" by a man who identified himself as Mr. Hoose.
"Mr. Hoose called to advise the center that he intentionally downloaded child
pornography onto his computer from a Web site that he could not remember the
address of. Mr. Hoose further stated that he has other child pornography on his
computer and has been collecting the images for approximately six months,"
Detective Donais said in a police report read to the grand jury.
Mr. Hoose, 32, allegedly gave the center his name, date of birth, address, place
of birth and mother's maiden name, according to the detective's report. The
phone call, which was recorded, was traced to a phone listed to Mr. Hoose and
the identifying information provided by the caller was confirmed as accurate,
Detective Donais testified.
Of the 110 images police said they retrieved from Mr. Hoose's computer, 37 were
identified by Dr. Christine Barron, the former director of UMass Memorial
Medical Center's Child Protection Program, as child pornography.
In a petition filed Monday in Worcester Superior Court, Mr. Hoose's lawyer, John
J. Kaeding, said 34 of the 37 images carry a copyright indicating they are the
property of ALS Scan Inc., a Maryland corporation. In an accompanying affidavit,
Mr. Kaeding said he had provided prosecutors with a statement from ALS Scan
indicating it maintained records verifying that all models used in its images
are at least 18 years old.
Mr. Kaeding said he had tried to secure ALS Scan records verifying the ages and
identities of the models in the 34 images, but had been told by the
corporation's legal counsel, Robert L. Lombardo, that the documents would only
be provided in response to a court order. Judge Francis R. Fecteau issued such
an order on Tuesday.
As requested by Mr. Lombardo, the documents are to be kept sealed to protect the
privacy of the people involved.
Mr. Kaeding is also seeking to exclude from trial Dr. Barron's testimony
concerning her opinion that the females depicted in the images are younger than
18. Mr. Kaeding said Dr. Barron's methodology in applying the so-called "Tanner
Scale" to estimate the chronological ages is "inherently unreliable" and does
not meet the minimum standards for expert testimony as outlined in the
applicable case law.
A hearing on Mr. Kaeding's motion to exclude Dr. Barron's testimony is scheduled
for March 10.
Last month, Judge Peter W. Agnes Jr. denied a defense motion to dismiss the
indictments against Mr. Hoose. Mr. Kaeding argued that the evidence presented to
the grand jury was insufficient to sustain the indictments. Despite Dr. Barron's
opinions, which were made known to the grand jury, the government produced no
evidence that the "children" depicted in the images on Mr. Hoose's computer were
"actual children," Mr. Kaeding charged.
Judge Agnes agreed with Assistant District Attorney Maura K. McCarthy that the
prosecution presented ample evidence to support the charges.