Former Superior Court Judge Ronald C. Kline offered “a lifetime of apologies” and then collapsed as he was sentenced to 27 months in federal prison for possession of child pornography. Police caught onto Kline after a Canadian computer whiz hacked into the judge’s Irvine home computer and discovered sexually explicit images of young boys and a diary that revealed Kline’s fantasies involving young boys. Brad Willman, the Canadian hacker, forwarded the information to an anti-pedophile watchdog group, which then sent the information to Irvine police detectives.
The sentence ended nearly six years of legal wrangling that saw Kline charged at one point with possessing child pornography in federal court and child molestation in state courts. The state case was ultimately dismissed, based on a U.S. Supreme Court ruling that the prosecution was pressed beyond the statute of limitations. The federal pornography case was also threatened in 2003 when Marshall ruled that the evidence of pornographic images found on his home computer had been illegally seized. But a federal appeals court disagreed with Marshall in 2004, and the pornography charges were reinstated. A year later, in December 2005, the ex-judge pleaded guilty and broke down in tears.
During the six years of court battles, Kline lost his job as a judge to a write-in candidate in 2002. He also lost his mobility for six years when he was ordered to wear a tracking anklet and placed on home confinement while his case was decided in court. Finally, he lost his freedom. He will not be eligible for parole until he serves at least 23 months. He was given until May 21 to report to federal prison.
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