A Douglas County jury found a father of young girls guilty of 36 felonies related to possessing child pornography.
John Arthur Murray
John Arthur Murray, 36, amassed the images between September 2009 and November 2017 at his home in Parker. His crimes came to light Nov. 24, 2017, when his wife at the time discovered the images while trying to download family photos from his computer’s hard drive.
The now ex-wife contacted Parker Police. Upon investigation with the Arapahoe County Computer Crime Lab, Parker Police discovered more than 400 images of interest, including 35 images that depicted children previously identified as being victims of child pornography by the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children.
The defendant is a father of two underage girls, and most of the images were of girls between the ages of 13-15.
“For most men, becoming a dad creates an awareness of the innocence and vulnerability of all children and the solemn obligation to protect them. But not here. Murray invited hundreds of images of children being exploited into the house where his own children slept, and in so doing, he continued to fuel the demand for child pornography,” said District Attorney George Brauchler. “Coloradans should know that our weak laws make this depravity punishable by as little as probation. Our communities deserve better, to ensure child-porn aficionados will be punished appropriately.”
Senior Deputy District Attorney Kelley Dziedzic prosecuted the case.
On May 10, 2019, the jury found Murray guilty of 35 counts of sexual exploitation of a child / possession of materials and one count of sexual exploitation of a child / possession of 20+ items.
Sentencing is set for Aug. 2.