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Summary: An attorney without a license to practice law in Pennsylvania was arrested for possessing child pornography and providing legal services and accepting payment without a license.
A Pennsylvania man was arrested for practicing law without a valid license, stealing from his client, and possessing child pornography. Authorities charged 39-year-old Clifton Heights man Brendan Magee with 101 counts of possessing child porn, sexual abuse of children, criminal use of communication facility, two counts of theft by deception, and three counts of unauthorized practice of law. The possessing child porn and criminal use of a communication facility charges are felonies.
The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children were given information that a person was using Google to upload images of suspected child pornography to their account. An investigation into the account was started by County Detective Sgt. Kenneth Bellis of the Criminal Investigation Division and Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force. Soon after Delaware County detectives and Clifton Heights police officers executed a search warrant on Magee’s home at the 500 block of South Church Street.
Magee was home when the officers arrived with a search warrant. He claimed his Gmail account had been hacked and shut down and never viewed child porn because he didn’t even have a computer at that time. During questioning, Magee became uncooperative and said he was done talking.
Police found a laptop and several electronic devices in his home. The equipment was confiscated and searched, with over 50 images and one video of child pornography found during a forensic examination by analyst Brian Knowlton and Detective Christopher Tankelewicz.
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Delaware County District Attorney Jack Whelan said, “Individuals who search out and view child pornography contribute to the appalling exploitation of innocent children. Our ICAC Task Force is actively working to locate and arrest these individuals.”
The investigation into Magee transformed into an additional one into his work. The investigation uncovered that Magee was practicing law even though he did not have a proper license to practice in Pennsylvania. His license had been suspended by the Disciplinary Board of the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania in December. Magee had failed to provide a valid law license. Instead, he used another attorney’s registration number so he could represent a client in February of 2014.
Whelan said, “He was never licensed in Pennsylvania. He actually was an attorney in a previous state.” He added, “As an attorney, Brendan Magee fraudulently represented himself, showing extreme contempt for the law and a complete disregard for the lawyer licensing process.”
The police claim Magee also failed to provide services in a child custody case in December of 2014 but took payment. They fear he may have more victims of his actions. Whelan said, “We’re asking if anyone ever utilized the services of a law firm or law offices under the name of Brendan J. Magee, they would contact the criminal investigation division of the office of district attorney.”
Magee was arraigned and remanded to the George H. Hill Correctional Facility when he was unable to post 10 percent of his $350,000 bail. His next hearing is set for September 7.
Can anything be done to deter people from downloading child pornography? Tell us your thoughts in the comments below.
To learn more about attorneys in possession of child pornography, read these articles:
- Illinois Attorney Ralph Tellefsen III Kept “Nauseating” Amounts of Child Porn
- California’s Deputy Attorney General Charged with Child Pornography Possession
- Attorney Christopher Young Charged with Child Pornography
Photo: publicdomainpictures.net
