Orange County Man Wins Appeal in Online Child Prostitution Sting
An Orange County appeals attorney has gotten his clients conviction overturned in a controversial sex crimes sting run by Huntington Beach police. Gregory Ruiz Aguirre, 53, was arrested after responding to an ad posted on Craiglist by Huntington Beach police pretending to be a 13 year old girl. Aguirre later showed up at a Carl’s Jr. Restaurant to meet the fictitious teen for sex and was arrested and ultimately convicted on 3 felonies and lifetime registration as a sex offender.
An appellate court overturned that conviction, stating that the judge failed to give the jury instructions on police entrapment in the trial.
In the ad posted on Craigslist, Huntington Beach police did not indicate that they were a 13 year old girl.
It wasn’t until after Aguirre made initial contact that they indicated that they were only 13. And when Aguirre asked for a picture, the picture sent was of a fully grown, mature woman. Aguirre claims that based on the picture sent, he did not believe the girl was actually 13.
Huntington Beach police also were the ones to initiate sexually explicit conversation, and also re-engaged Aguirre 4 separate times via electronic communication in an attempt to suck Aguirre back in.
The appeals court determined that a reasonable jury might have deemed the police’s actions as entrapment and that Aguirre could have received a more favorable outcome in the trial had the judge properly instructed the jury.
Online police stings are becoming more and more common in attempts to hunt down child predators.
But not all stings are conducted in a manner that would hold up in court. Knowing the law by contacted an experienced sex crimes attorney is the only way to make sure that your freedom is protected.
