Sex Crimes

May 17, 2023

Police Officer Charged With Criminal Sexual Abuse

by Law Offices of David L. Freidberg, P.C.

A Chicago police officer has been recently charged with a sex crime after he was accused of having a sexual relationship with a child. Police are remaining silent about the child’s age and gender but have charged the officer based on the child’s self-reported allegations. According to police, the attack occurred in a parking lot. The victim knew the attacker and identified him as a 30-year-old police officer in good standing with CPD.

In a case like this, the child will be interviewed by the Children’s Advocacy Center in conjunction with CPD’s Internal Affairs and the Civilian Office of Police Accountability. The officer has since been charged with a felony count of aggravated criminal sexual abuse against a child as well as aggravated battery in public.

According to authorities, the attack was violent. The officer is accused of groping the victim and then striking them. The defendant has been released on a $10,000 bond and is required to have no contact with the victim or anyone under the age of 18.

May 12, 2023

College Football Player Arrested on Charges of Sexual Assault

by Law Offices of David L. Freidberg, P.C.

A college football player is facing serious charges of sexual assault after authorities say that he pushed a woman into a stairwell, knocking her unconscious and then raping her. The force of the shove left her with a fractured spine. He is now facing charges of felony sexual assault and misdemeanor domestic violence.

According to the allegations, the football player accused the woman of cheating on him. The argument grew tenser, and he pushed the woman into a stairwell. The woman was injured enough that she lost mobility, and she began pleading with the football player to call an ambulance. He refused, and instead, he raped her.

Had he called an ambulance, he would have likely faced charges for misdemeanor domestic violence, been required to take an anger management course, and possibly been able to establish himself at another university. But the event did not unfold that way, and he is now facing criminal sexual assault charges that would include significant prison time. At this point, he has been suspended indefinitely, pending the outcome of the investigation.

February 3, 2023

Tattoo Artist Accused of Sexual Assault While Out on Bond for Sexual Assault

by Law Offices of David L. Freidberg, P.C.

This is part of the problem with the arguments against removing cash bail. The obvious thing is that cash bail does not prevent violent individuals from committing more violent crimes. It allows those who can afford to buy their way out of jail, do so. The idea that this makes you safer is silly.

Ending cash bail would give judges discretion over which cases an individual could be held for. In the case of sexual assault or other violent crimes, any form of bail would be denied.

In this case, a man was accused of sexually assaulting several female clients to whom he provided tattoos. He was charged with the crimes, bonded out of jail, and then committed several more sexual assaults. On Wednesday, he was denied bail.

February 1, 2023

R. Kelly Charges Dropped Causing Wave of Anger

by Law Offices of David L. Freidberg, P.C.

There are a lot of issues at play in this case that have nothing to do with justice or the adjudication of guilt for a crime. Ultimately, these issues may have caused Chicago prosecutors to take their chips off the board and play another game. However, at present, the sex crimes charges against R. Kelly in Chicago have been dropped.

Many people, especially the victims, are angry that the prosecutors initiated the effort to build a case against Kelly and then decided not to pursue it. This has left the four Chicago victims with misgivings over the process of justice.

The state decided that the cost of prosecuting Kelly for these crimes was not worth it. Kelly is serving a 30-year sentence and will not be eligible for parole until he is at least 80. Kelly was convicted on various federal charges, including sex trafficking, enticement of a minor, and production of child pornography. However, he has never been convicted on the four counts of sexual assault he committed against the four Chicago victims.

January 27, 2023

Former Police Officer Charged With Possession of Child Pornography

by Law Offices of David L. Freidberg, P.C.

A former Dixmoor police officer is being held on $1 million bail after being found in possession of dozens of images of child pornography. The officer faces three felony charges related to the possession of child pornography. Police found 35 images on his phone. In some cases, the girls pictured on the phone were described as “prepubescent.”

In some states, you can be charged for each image found in your possession. In Illinois, they will charge you for each depiction of a minor. In this case, three victims were found on the defendant’s phone. Hence, he is facing three felony charges related to the possession of child pornography. The same girl was found in several of the pictures. Police will track down the victim to determine if more criminal charges are justified. If the defendant created the pornography, then that is another crime the state can add to the ledger.

Police were tipped off when child pornography was found in the account of the defendant’s email. The tip was sent to the Center for Missing and Exploited Children, which forwarded the tip to law enforcement, which confronted the officer and seized three phones from his possession, all of which contained the files in the tip.

January 20, 2023

Chicago Public Schools Sex Crimes Unit Reports “Extraordinary High Case Volume”

by Law Offices of David L. Freidberg, P.C.

Yes, the City of Chicago has a department that investigates every allegation of sexual abuse made against an employee of the city. Since its creation in 2018, it has handled over 1,700 complaints. This year, however, the unit fielded a record-high number of complaints, 470. The complaints ranged from the bizarre to the infuriating and have resulted in 16 cases being filed against school-affiliated employees.

The district cautioned parents about interpreting the data. They claim that Chicago Public Schools do not have a higher rate of sex crimes than other districts. They remain one of the few districts to keep accurate records of sex crimes and report those to the media. According to CPS, paying better attention results in better information, which may result in shocking statistics.

The district reminded parents that even though the volume is higher, in many cases, there would be no investigation regardless of the quality of the allegations.

January 13, 2023

Law Enforcement Ponders the Role of Deepfakes in CSAM

by Law Offices of David L. Freidberg, P.C.

Child sex abuse material (CSAM) remains a major concern for law enforcement. Today, the penalties for possession, dissemination, and creation of CSAM are higher than ever before. Part of the role that law enforcement plays is identifying victims. Today, it is possible to generate the face of a random individual that looks real. Could producers of CSAM use this technology to produce illegal pornography? Absolutely.

But is it a crime?

What Remains Illegal?

January 11, 2023

Deepfake Tech and American Law

by Law Offices of David L. Freidberg, P.C.

You have probably seen ads for AI image generators on social media and are wondering about the legality of that and how it can be legally used. Most of that remains unclear; today, it is possible to put major public figures into images and photos potentially doing compromising things. While on the one hand, this can be used in ugly and nefarious ways. On the other hand, it casts doubt on the veracity of all images.

Revenge porn, child pornography, and other illegal forms of pornography seem now to have a legal avenue into the mainstream. While AI art-generating sites will prevent images with nudity from being generated, it remains within the realm of possibility to create images of an ex or illegal pornography for personal use. What does the law say about this?

It is illegal

November 25, 2022

Chicago Man Sentenced for Revenge Porn

by Law Offices of David L. Freidberg, P.C.

The Nonconsensual Pornography Act is a D.C. statute drafted in 2014 to address the problem of revenge porn. Recently, a 25-year-old Chicago man was charged under the statute after he posted several images of women without their consent. Several states have moved to criminalize revenge porn. Now, the 25-year-old Chicago man will spend the next five years in prison for unlawfully distributing sexual images of women without their consent. He was further accused of stalking witnesses who were to provide testimony against him.

He pleaded guilty to two counts of unlawful publication, two counts of stalking, and a felony count of making threats against a witness.

Does Illinois Have a Revenge Porn Law?

October 28, 2022

Man Arrested for Attempted Rape of Postal Worker

by Law Offices of David L. Freidberg, P.C.

A Chicago man was arrested after the attempted rape of a female postal worker in Little Village over the weekend. According to the police report, the postal worker found the man waiting for her in her truck. An altercation ensued, and the postal worker was able to escape. However, the man then stole the mail truck. He has since been charged with attempted criminal sexual assault and vehicular hijacking. The postal worker was taken to a hospital and released.

The Post Office offered a $50,000 reward for anyone with information leading to the man’s arrest. The surveillance video image shows a clear shot of the defendant’s face.

The defendant faces a litany of charges, any one of which could put him behind bars for decades or more. With the volume of major felonies he is facing, the defendant is unlikely to see the outside of a prison cell again. They have him at least on grand theft of government property and battery on a government employee. The victim will provide testimony as to the rest of the elements of the prosecution’s case involving attempted sexual assault.