Plea Bargain Possible For Ex-Sen. Alexander Aide Facing Child Porn Charges

[DonViejo]

ERIC LACH – JANUARY 2, 2014, 11:13 AM EST

A plea deal could be in the works for Ryan Loskarn, Sen. Lamar Alexander's (R-TN) former chief of staff who was arrested last month on suspicion of possessing and distributing child porn, Roll Call reported on Tuesday.

Court documents indicated that prosecutors and Loskarn's lawyers “intend to explore the possibility of a pre-indictment disposition” and had agreed to a 30-day delay in the deadline to obtain a grand jury indictment. The new deadline for an indictment in the case is Feb. 10.

Loskarn, a 35-year-old Maryland native, was arrested last month on charges of possession and distribution of child pornography. A few hours after the arrest, Alexander announced that he had removed Loskarn from his payroll and appointed a new chief of staff.

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http://talkingpointsmemo.com/livewire/loskarn-case-delay

[Glorfindel]

1. Plea bargain? Why, of course. He's a Republican.

Perhaps a slap on the wrist and an admonishment, "Now, now. Mustn't be naughty." He'll probably be elected to Congress in the next few years, after "finding" Jesus, of course.

[Chan790]

2. Actually.

Deals in these sorts of cases are not uncommon. They often take the form of become our informant/mole so we can take down the entire network and we'll let you serve your full-term (or nearly-full-term) sentence in a low-security facility near loved ones where you won't face the prospect of daily rape and beatings. Club Fed over Hazelton or Lewisburg.

Likewise, the next guy gets the same offer until you nab the producers and major distributors. That's who they really want...the guys making the kiddie porn. If you can put 100 or 150 buyers behind bars along the way and away from kids while avoiding costly and hard to win trials, that's a good thing.

(I volunteer for an organization that targets pages and users that use social media to distribute child pornography. There's a whole side of Facebook and Twitter that most users never see, it's like a hydra...as soon as we take down one, two more pop up. Usually in the form of secret invite-only groups.)