Former KGO radio host Bernie Ward to change not guilty plea in porn case

[Newsjock]

Source: San Francisco Chronicle

Former radio talk show host Bernie Ward, who pleaded not guilty in December to distributing and receiving child pornography via the Internet, plans to change his plea Thursday, federal court records show.

Ward, 57, is scheduled to appear before U.S. District Judge Vaughn Walker in San Francisco to change his plea. He is a month away from going on trial. Ward's attorney, Doron Weinberg, was unavailable for comment Tuesday night.

... Ward pleaded not guilty to the charges in December and had insisted that he was innocent of any wrongdoing. Weinberg has said the conversations Ward had with the woman consisted only of role playing as part of a book he was researching on hypocrisy.

Read more: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/05/06/BAE610I5P4.DTL&tsp=1

[varkam]

1. Yup. Conducting "research" is not a legitimate defense in these cases.

He's in for a rough ride, no doubt.

[moggie]

2. He's a former Catholic priest

I wonder why he left the priesthood? Plenty of opportunities for "research" there.

[VeraAgnes]

3. Oh Pleeeze!

Don't say that anymore....................:spank: :scared: :cry:

[Gman]

7. Maybe he knew he had those tendencies

and left the priesthood because of them? If true, he did the right thing.

Your unwarranted and arbitrary slap at Catholic priests is not unnoticed.

[moggie]

8. Glad to be of service

Stop priests molesting kids, and people will stop drawing attention to it.

[Gman]

10. I do wonder, though

how someone, especially like you, can have so much fun at someone else's expense. You must be carrying a lot of baggage. Were you ever taken up into an alien spaceship perchance?

[moggie]

12. It's not fun, believe me

This is a deadly serious subject.

[Mountainman]

13. Here's a thought, My brother is a Catholic priest. He was also married and has two kids and two

grand kids. His marriage was annulled and he went to the seminary. He is tarnished by what other priests have done and part of that comes from people who say the things you say. The vast majority of religious leaders do not molest kids. The Church has a very bad record in this area but what you say is unfair to people like my brother. What you are saying is very similar to saying all men are rapists or want to rape.

[moggie]

14. With respect, you're blaming the wrong people

I did not say that all priests molest kids: in fact, the proportion of predatory priests may be similar to that in other professions where adults are entrusted with kids, such as teaching. But this is not an argument for keeping silent on the issue, as the church (with its history of cover-ups) would prefer. The more light thrown on the problem, the more chance of driving the predators and their enablers out of the system. Isn't that what we all want?

[Gman]

15. You've already done said it

and made a fool of yourself. Don't wiggle around now trying to get out of it.

[nachoproblem]

4. supposedly he was distributing

Makes his "research" argument unlikely.

Stick a fork in him, he's done. Sad.

[Razorblade01]

5. Bernie's case has Me Crushed!

I was a devout fan of his since 1994. There was only a few things he commented on that I disagreed with. Child porn was one. And panhandling by the homeless was another. I looked upon him and the other lib talkers as my heroes. He has destroyed that. He kept me sane for the past 7 years under Bush but now I have to say he has totally disgusted me and hurt me. He has also made me question my judgement in people. And yes, even made me question my own political beliefs. I pray for his soul and more than anything, I pray for his family. I hope this things is something they can get past.

[Razorblade01]

6. Bump

N/a

[rdenney]

11. I feel the same way about the Lion of the Left....

Bernie, why oh WHY did you let us down when we needed you most?

[hunter]

9. Call me paranoid, but it's given me some insight how U.S. media works.

And maybe U.S. politics in general.

It seems that everyone who rises to power must have a fatal flaw, a sturdy leash that can be tugged on at any time by the corporate power structure, or used to discredit the person if they get too far out of line.

Look at Barbara Walters' affair with Edward Brooke. At any time either one of them could have been brought down.

I'm also thinking of Dan Rather. Maybe they didn't have anything on him, or he had something on them, so they had to make shit up to bring him down when he got too inquisitive.

Ah, it's a sad day.