California Court of Appeal

Although California's statute prohibiting the knowing "possession or control" of child pornography does not prohibit the mere viewing of child pornography, its language encompasses the purposeful display of child pornography on a computer screen. Accordingly, conviction is affirmed where defendant intentionally used his computers to find, access and peruse child pornography, manipulating the display of such images on his computer screen.

Appellate Information

• Decided 01/08/2009
• Published 01/08/2009

Judges

• CANTIL-SAKAUYE, J.

Court

• California Court of Appeal

Counsel

• For Appellant:
  
• Myron Moskovitz, San Francisco;  Hakeen, Ellis & Marengo, Marshall & Marshall, Russell S. Humphrey;  and Markus Mueller-Dombois for Petitioner., No appearance for real party in interest.


• For Appellees:
  
• Edmund G. Brown, Jr., Attorney General, Dane R. Gillette, Chief Assistant Attorney General, Michael P. Farrell, Senior Assistant Attorney General, J. Robert Jibson, Supervising Deputy Attorney General, Raymond L. Brosterhous II, Deputy Attorney General;  James P. Willett, District Attorney, Ronald J. Freitas, Supervising Deputy District Attorney, Janet L. Smith, Deputy District Attorney for Respondent.