Taycheedah man accused of virtual child porn seeks dismissal of 9 counts due to alleged First Amendment violations

Yahoo

4 days ago

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FOND DU LAC, Wis. (WFRV) – A 20-year-old Taycheedah man charged with nine counts of possessing virtual child pornography and one count of resisting an officer has filed a motion to dismiss the possession charges, alleging an infringement on his First Amendment rights.
According to a criminal complaint, Meillo Schneider was charged in November 2024 after a cyber tip was reported to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) in April 2024 by Amazon Photos' Trust and Safety Team.
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An investigation into the reports identified over 13,000 images of virtual child pornography. The complaint said that a Fond du Lac Police Detective said it was difficult to distinguish the images as either artificial intelligence (AI) generated or if they were of real and unknown victims.
The complaint states that the photos were very realistic and showed children/infants performing sexual acts on adults or themselves in various and explicit ways.
According to the complaint, during a search warrant on Schneider's residence in November, detectives asked him about the types of porn he watched, which he didn't want to reveal as he was in public, and 'hoped there was nothing wrong with a little self-relief.'
Schneider was reportedly asked if he had seen anything illegal, as well.
'By this country's standards, sadly yes, but I would hope that this country also understands that I'm not going to re-distribute or like sell it,' Schneider reportedly said. 'I just want it for personal gratification.'
Regarding the motion to dismiss, which was filed in a hearing on July 14, 2025, Schneider and his attorney sought to dismiss counts 1-7 and 9-10 (all of which are possession of virtual child pornography), arguing that prosecution for it would be a violation of his First Amendment rights.
On April 8, 2025, the defense filed a 'Motion to Make More Definite and Certain' to request that the state explicitly define the alleged charges as to what Schneider is being prosecuted for. The motion to dismiss states that a hearing on May 12 revealed that the state 'would be proceeding on a theory of merely possession.'
Schneider and his attorneys' motion to dismiss cites several recent court cases regarding the First Amendment, citing that it bars the government from controlling what people see, read, speak or hear. It did, however, acknowledge that there are limits, especially regarding pornography with 'real' children.
One landmark case that was cited in the motion, New York v. Ferber, states that the First Amendment doesn't protect the sale or manufacturing of child sexual abuse material. But the motion also added that the Ferber case acknowledged an alternative.
'The Ferber Court recognized that some works of child pornography may have value and that virtual images were an alternative and permissible means of expression,' the motion reads.
It also alleges that virtual child pornography does not directly relate to the sexual abuse of children.
The motion also challenges a statute that Wisconsin passed in 2024, which imposed the same penalties for virtual child pornography (948.125) as it does for possessing child pornography. Click here to learn more about this bill.
The motion continued, citing the landmark case Stanley v. Georgia, which ruled that the 'government's power to regulate obscenity does not extend to the regulation of simply possessing obscenity by a person in the privacy of their home.'
According to the motion filed by Schneider's attorney, Timothy Hogan, the state is attempting to 'prosecute Mr. Schneider for the mere possession of obscene material,' which he claimed to be in direct violation of Schneider's First Amendment rights under Stanley v. Georgia.
The motion argues that the statute passed in 2024 is unconstitutional in this specific case because of the ruling in Stanley v. Georgia.
The following is a direct statement from the motion:
'The state did not charge Mr. Schneider with the possession of actual child pornography, and rightly so given the nature of the images he allegedly possessed. The state has chosen to prosecute Mr. Schneider for his alleged private possession of material it believes to be obscene, since if the materials were not obscene, his alleged conduct would not meet the elements of the offense. Because the First Amendment protects the right of Mr. Schneider to see or read or view obscene materials in the privacy of his own home, this prosecution directly implicates, and violates, the First Amendment. Thus, in order for this prosecution to stand and survive scrutiny, it is the state that bears the burden to establish, beyond a reasonable doubt, that its application of Wisconsin Statute section 948.125 against Mr. Schneider is constitutional.'
Motion to dismiss filed by Attorney Timothy Hogan of Hogan Eickhoff, SC
If this motion is granted, Schneider would still face one charge of misdemeanor resistance/obstruction of an officer.
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Schneider is set for a status conference on August 4 at 8:30 a.m.
Local 5 will provide updates as this case continues.
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