Arlington Heights attorney faces child pornography charges
An Arlington Heights attorney who authorities say possessed 500 photographs and 50 videos depicting children engaging in sexual conduct has been charged with child pornography.
James R. Crowley, 36, was ordered held on $100,000 bail Wednesday.
Arlington Heights police began investigating Crowley in January after they received a tip from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children that child pornography was uploaded to an Internet service provider address belonging to Crowley 10 times beginning in November 2014, said Cook County Assistant State's Attorney Maureen McGee.
The images, some of which authorities say were uploaded to Crowley's Twitter account, were traced to the same IP address, which police determined was Crowley's, McGee said.
During a search of Crowley's home on March 11, 2015, police recovered a laptop, hard drives, thumb drives and DVDs that showed children engaged in sexual acts, McGee said, adding that some of the children were younger than 13.
The investigation also found evidence from a file-sharing network regarding the trading of "young porn," McGee said.
Judge Joseph Cataldo ordered Crowley have no contact with anyone under 18 and surrender any firearms. Cataldo also prohibited Crowley from using the Internet except for business, McGee said.
If convicted, Crowley faces a maximum of seven years in prison. He next appears in court on July 17.