A master sergeant in the Marion County Sheriff’s Office has resigned and retired after he learned that the department had launched an internal investigation into photos found on his phone.
According to the internal affairs report, the investigation began when the sheriff’s office was contacted by the Center for Missing and Exploited Children.
The organization sent a cyber tip and 18 photographs of naked preteen girls that officials said Master Sgt. Duane Denault had viewed.
The sheriff’s office started a criminal investigation, but determined that no law had been violated because the photos were classified as “child erotica.”
“Child pornography is a crime, child erotica is not,” said WFTV legal analyst Bill Sheaffer.
Officials said that because the photos don’t depict sexual activity, they are considered erotica.
Investigators said that when they talked to Denault, he said he never downloaded the photos.
He said that while he was looking at adult porn, nudist colony pictures of children would sometimes appear, and he admitted that he clicked on a few.
"Although possession of child erotica is not a crime, it certainly violates the moral code of the sheriff's office," said Sheaffer.
Channel 9’s Myrt Price tried to track down the former deputy, but no one at his home would answer the door.
Cox Media Group
