Supreme court reinstates Batavia man's child porn conviction

The Illinois Supreme Court on Thursday reinstated the child pornography conviction of a Batavia man who was charged after his girlfriend reported him to police.

Charles E. Clendenin, 34, of the 400 block of Mill Street, was found guilty of child pornography possession in 2007. The conviction was overturned last year when an appellate court ruled his attorney was ineffective.

In a 24-page opinion, the supreme court reversed that ruling Thursday, saying it was Clendenin and not his lawyer who appeared "relatively uninterested and disengaged in the (court) process."

Clendenin, formerly of St. Charles, was charged in September 2003 after a neighbor with whom he had developed a romantic relationship went to police with a computer disk that contained child pornography.

The woman told authorities she took the disc from Clendenin's home in St. Charles during a stop to water his plants while he was on vacation. She said she grew suspicious after finding four camera lenses hooked to his computer, and a case containing about 50 discs behind it.

Clendenin unsuccessfully challenged his arrest, arguing unlawful search and seizure, before agreeing to stipulate to evidence that ultimately led a judge to find him guilty. In 2009, the conviction was overturned when the appellate court ruled that his former attorney, Larry Wechter, ineffectively handled the case after Clendenin argued he was misinformed about the stipulation and objected to it.

Defense attorney Stephen Brundage, who now represents Clendenin, said Thursday that the supreme court's decision did not address several issues still at hand, such as whether Wechter misinformed his client about having to register as a sex offender for life if convicted and whether there were discovery violations. Brundage said he intends to take those issues back to the appellate court.

"We're disappointed with the supreme court's decision, but it does leave room for continued review at the appellate level," he said. "The Sixth Amendment right to competent counsel is one of the touchstones of criminal justice. Without competent counsel, it would be like not having a lawyer at all."

Clendenin had been sentenced to two years of probation and 62 days in jail upon his initial conviction, according to Kane County court records.