Lake Co. man pleads not guilty to child porn possession

A Fremont Township man police said had more than 500 images of child pornography on his computers pleaded not guilty Wednesday in Lake County circuit court.

James Considine, 58, faces up to five years in prison if convicted of possession of child pornography.

Assistant State's Attorney Mary Stanton said a detective in the St. Lucy County sheriff's department in Fort Pierce, Fla., called local authorities and explained he had been conversing with Considine in Internet chat rooms.

In early December, the detective said, Considine had sent him a message saying he was molesting his 13-year-old daughter.

The computer that sent the message was traced to Considine's home in the 26000 block of Longmeadow Drive, and Lake County sheriff's police were sent to investigate.

Stanton said Considine told the officers he did not have a daughter but admitted there was child pornography on his computer.

Desktop and laptop computers and a hard drive were confiscated, Stanton said, and Considine surrendered to police on Dec. 22 after the presence of the pornography was confirmed.

Circuit Judge Victoria Rossetti scheduled a trial in the case for April 13 and ordered Considine to appear in court again Feb. 19.