Judge rules Lake in the Hills child porn raid legal

A U.S. Department of Homeland Security raid that led to child pornography charges against a Lake in the Hills man was legal, a McHenry County judge ruled Wednesday.

Judge Sharon Prather rejected defense claims that federal authorities used outdated information to search the home and computer of Joseph P. Chuffo, saying it was logical for agents to expect a suspected child pornographer to keep illicit images for a long time.

"Rarely, if ever, do they dispose of it and they save it and store it in a safe place," Prather said. "Therefore, it was reasonable for them to believe he still had it."

Chuffo, 60, 1214 Sycamore St., faces charges of child pornography and possession of child pornography alleging he had and distributed an undisclosed number of images of children in sexually explicit situations.

He has pleaded not guilty to the accusations, which could land him up to 15 years in prison if found guilty on both counts.

Federal agents raided his home in July 2006, about nine months after German National Police told Homeland Security they had downloaded child pornography from an Internet Protocol address later traced to Chuffo.

Chuffo's defense had argued that by the time agents went to his residence, the information from German authorities was "stale" and therefore unreliable as probable cause for a search.

After losing his bid to have the search declared illegal, Chuffo waived his right to a jury trial and asked for Prather to decide his case instead. A trial date was set for Dec. 3.

Chuffo will remain free on a $5,000 bond until then.