Man faces child porn possession charge after wife calls police

A former Carpentersville man was charged earlier this month with aggravated child pornography possession after his estranged wife found an unfamiliar file on the couple's shared laptop computer last year, according to police and court records.

Thomas A. Stout, 53, of the 1700 block of Victoria Drive, Mount Prospect, faces seven felony charges and could be sentenced to anywhere from probation to seven years in prison if convicted, according to Kane County court records.

Carpentersville Police Cmdr. Timothy Bosshart said Stout's wife alerted police in March 2012 to possible child pornography on a laptop the couple shared.

“She noticed a file that didn't look familiar to her. She opened it up and it was a pornographic image of what she believed to be a child,” Bosshart said. “Knowing it wasn't hers, she contacted police and turned the computer over to us.”

Bosshart said the computer was sent to the Chicago Regional Computer Forensic Lab for examination. Charges were filed in late July and an arrest warrant was issued.

Bosshart said Stout is accused of downloading images and videos. Bosshart could not specify how many images were found on the computer.

Bosshart said Stout later committed a domestic attack against his wife for turning over the computer.

According to court records, Stout was charged with felony domestic battery June 28, 2012. He was accused of pushing his wife to the ground atop broken ceramic pieces, causing two cuts that required stitches.

Stout eventually pleaded guilty to a reduced misdemeanor charge, spent 15 days in jail, was given 12 months of supervision and fined $415, records show.