A retired California judge has succeeded in getting his friend a
sweetheart sentence for soliciting children online and possessing
images of children being sexually assaulted.
Retired California Judge William Burleigh recently asked Judge Terrence Duncan to go easy on his friend Denis Wagner, 72, reports the Monterey County Herald. Prosecutors say Wagner admitted contacting children "as young as 10 years old" online for sex. Police seized Wagner's computer and found hundreds of child abuse photos.
But according to the paper, Wagner and Burleigh "spent time [together] on nearly a daily basis." The retired judge told the court he hired Wagner to work on his Big Sur home, calling him a "brilliant designer."
"I know him," said Burleigh, "He's just not that type of person."
Prosecutors appealed to sitting Judge Terrance Duncan, without much luck. "This is very serious," said prosecutor Amy Patterson. "There are a lot of victims out there who have been exploited because of what he's done."
Duncan sentenced Wagner to three years probation.
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The PROTECT Lobby
Our Mission
The National Association to Protect Children is a national, pro-child, anti-crime membership association. We are founded on the belief that our first and most sacred obligation as parents, citizens, and members of the human species is the protection of children from harm.
PROTECT is a bipartisan pro-child, anti-crime lobby whose sole focus is making the protection of children a top political and policy priority at the national, state and local level.
