U.S. Vs. Pruitt Essay (Essay Sample)

U.S. Vs. Pruitt
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U.S. Vs. Pruitt
Computers crimes are on the rise following the introduction of the internet. Today, there are many people who are committing crimes via the internet in their computers, and this is a violation of many federal and state laws. About the above case, it is evident that the defendant used his work and home computers to access child pornography, violating 18 U.S.C. 2252A (a) (2) (A) (Infosecusa.com, 2011). According to the federal government 18 U.S. Code § 2252A, anyone who knowingly transports, mails, ships child pornography interstate or from foreign nations by any means such as through computers is guilty (Law.cornell.edu, 2015).
US vs. Pruitt case under investigation was committed via a computer; work and home computers (Infosecusa.com, 2011). Child pornography has risen with the development of the internet. There are many websites that post nudity pictures and videos of teens. These materials are accessed via computers, and this make computers part of sexual crimes against children. Computers themselves do not commit the crime, but they are used as a means of obtaining illegal materials (Easttom & Taylor, 2011). Hence, to solve this child pornography cases, involved computers must be seized to help the investigators conduct a forensic study regarding the defendant. It is clear that computers were used to commit this crime because Pruitt used both his office, and home computers to view child pornographic material knowingly (Infosecusa.com, 2011).
Computer crimes are on the rise, and this has led to the formation of many bodies to fight against this rampant crime. Federal Bureau of Investigation has been on the front line in combating this offense, which is on the rise especially among state and federal employees in America. Another agency that could have been used to fight child pornography and computer crimes is the “Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS)” (Justice.gov, 2014). This agency consists of attorneys, who seek to prosecute people, and organizations that manufacture, distribute, and possess child pornography materials. This agency provides forensic study evidence that helps the jury make a better judgment in any child pornography cases. Under its “High Technology Investigative Unit (HTIU)”, Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, uses technology to prosecute high –technology child exploitation cases (Justice.gov, 2014).
HTIU employees have remarkable forensic expertise skills, and this agency could have been of great use in solving Pruitt, and child pornography case. HTIU understands that for any computer crime to be resolved fairly, undertaking computer forensic studies is crucial; computers are the primary tools used in committing child pornography crime (Justice.gov, 2014). The second agency that could have been useful in solving this computer crime case is the “Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention” (Gao.gov, 2002). This agency fights computer crimes by funding task forces that confront cases involving children, which are conducted via the net such as child pornography (Gao.gov, 2002).
One of the types of forensic skills that agents should possess is the ability to collect, and analyze data to convict or exonerate the accused (Intratec.co.za, 2015). Agents should also be able to secure the scene of crime or the computers involved in cyber crime to avoid contamination of evidence. Often, accused people delete data, but forensic study software can help agents retrieved all the deleted incriminating data. Seizing the office and home computers that were used in child pornography are the primary duties of the investigators. This assists agents to protect evidence and store the evidence in a secure lab (Intratec.co.za, 2015). More so, to provide irrefutable evidence against the defendant, agencies must ensure that they use certified forensic experts, and licensed equipment in their computer crime case analysis (Intratec.co.za, 2015).
Additionally, computer forensic evidence should be kept safe because any alteration can ruin the evidence, and acquit guilty people. The best documentation process is first seizing the two computers to ensure that the accused person does not delete any information that can weaken the case (Intratec.co.za, 2015). Second, all computers forensic evidence should be kept in a secure lab to facilitate analysis of data appropriately. Documentation of evidence is fundamental since wrong storage can result in contamination, and loss of proof (Intratec.co.za, 2015). Agents handling this case should ensure that they label all evidence correctly to avoid confusion and mixture of the proof in the lab. Also, evidence must be signed by the agents undertaking the case, and any analysis should be done with legal authority to secure evidence (Intratec.co.za, 2015).
About the case in the textbook (US. versus AOL) and the case used in this essay; U.S. vs. Pruitt, there are some similarities regarding computer usage in crime. The first similarity is that computers have been used to conduct crimes though they are not part of the offen...