"West Point Cadet Guilty Of Owning, Distributing Child Porn"

RallyPoint Shared Content — Wed, 24 Jun 2015 10:05:14 -0400

Originally published on newyork.cbslocal.com:
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WHITE PLAINS, N.Y. (CBSNewYork/AP) — A West Point cadet was convicted Tuesday of possessing a collection of child pornography and sharing it over the Internet.

A federal court jury in White Plains found 25-year-old Ricky Patrick Hester guilty of possessing and distributing pornographic photos and videos.
Hester, of Granger, Indiana, faces a mandatory minimum of five years in prison on the distribution conviction.

He has been on leave at the U.S. Military Academy since his arrest in 2013. He was one semester short of graduation.

The academy said then that the allegations against Hester were “inconsistent with the values of the U.S. Military Academy and the Army.”

The government said emails expressing interest in child pornography had been traced to Hester from Idaho. Hester was arrested at his barracks by Homeland Security agents.

When agents questioned Hester, he “confessed in full,” prosecutor Lauren Schorr said in the trial’s opening statements.

But Hester’s lawyer, Patrick Mullin, responded that the agents’ questioning and their search of his room were improper. He suggested that investigators settled on Hester as their suspect too soon, noting that another cadet used the same room and many cadets had access to a West Point wireless network.
Mullin refused to comment after the verdict.

Schorr said Hester used his cellphone and a Dropbox account to collect “hundreds of shocking portrayals of children” and then engaged in trading over the Internet. She told jurors he had transmitted an email message saying he was interested in images of “boys tied up and being forced to do things.”

http://newyork.cbslocal.com/2015/06/23/west-point-cadet-guilty-of-owning-distributing-child-porn/

Response by SPC Jan Allbright, M.Sc., R.S. made Jun 24 at 2015 10:06 AM

SPC Jan Allbright, M.Sc., R.S. — Wed, 24 Jun 2015 10:06:48 -0400

OK .. what's the "question"?

Response by CPT Aaron Kletzing made Jun 24 at 2015 10:20 AM

CPT Aaron Kletzing — Wed, 24 Jun 2015 10:20:23 -0400

Yes, I saw this article as well -- horrible, disgraceful, disgusting. As a USMA alum myself, I am especially disappointed in the actions of this individual, as to some extent those actions reflect on the institution as a whole...regardless of whether that's fair.

Response by COL Charles Williams made Jun 24 at 2015 10:31 AM

COL Charles Williams — Wed, 24 Jun 2015 10:31:30 -0400

Interesting. Having been there for 4 years (As a TAC, SGS, and XO), and knowing our Military Academies are always under the microscope (they are not without issue), I always read articles that pop up about discipline issues, especially at West Point. Plus, in my new job, we continue to encourage kids to and have kids attend - We have 4 there since I started here.

That said CPT Aaron Kletzing, this is a crime, and it should be handled like any other crime. Unfortunately, criminals appear in all corners. I think some, however, can be more newsworthy, or are believed to be - Leaders, Cadets, etc.

After many years in the Army as a leader and a MP, nothing really surprises me. As others stated... Child porn, online porn, etc. are huge issue in this day and age. I also know anything you do on a computer can be seen, and located.... I have seen the information recovered more than once...

I wonder if this young man has bill from USMA now? In my day the only one's they sought reimbursement from, were criminal cases resulting in dismissal.

Response by LTC Vincent Moore made Jun 24 at 2015 11:32 AM

LTC Vincent Moore — Wed, 24 Jun 2015 11:32:30 -0400

As a grad, I am aware that this hallowed institution is not immune to the ills prevalent throughout our society. I know of a grad in my class who was convicted of child molestation as an LT. I'm glad that this guy was caught before greater harm may have occurred.

Response by Capt Private RallyPoint Member made Jun 24 at 2015 11:05 PM

Capt Private RallyPoint Member — Wed, 24 Jun 2015 23:05:42 -0400

We as a society should be better than this. Military or not there is nothing that can justify this. As a military member we need to be constantly aware that our actions bring credit, positive or negative, to the military as a whole.

Response by PO1 John Miller made Jun 25 at 2015 8:06 AM

PO1 John Miller — Thu, 25 Jun 2015 08:06:36 -0400

Thank God he was caught and convicted before (hopefully) he actually sexually assaulted a child!

Response by Cpl Jeff N. made Jun 25 at 2015 8:08 AM

Cpl Jeff N. — Thu, 25 Jun 2015 08:08:23 -0400

This will be the next thing we will be forced to accept as "normal" behavior. Get ready for it, gird your loins. Child pornography is part of the sexual culture and supported by organizations like NAMBLA.

You think that is far fetched, look at the last 20 or so years in the military regarding sexual and sexuality issues. The unacceptable today becomes the norm of tomorrow. You needn't look any further than RP to see this in action.