LOS ANGELES : Evidence Against Ex-Officer in Porno Case Thrown Out
A Superior Court judge threw out evidence Friday against a retired Los Angeles police officer accused of taking child pornography from police evidence lockers for personal use.
Judge Robert J. Perry’s ruling undercuts the charges against Walter Ray Bentley Jr., whose lawyer argued that police failed to explain why they needed to search his client’s Granada Hills home.
Prosecutors are now re-examining the case, saying they may have to drop the charges.
The purpose of the search was to look for evidence that Bentley had been leaking confidential criminal records to two private investigators, including retired Deputy Los Angeles Police Chief Daniel R. Sullivan. Sullivan pleaded no contest in September to possessing the confidential files and was fined $5,000 and placed on a year’s probation. Bentley, 47, is also accused of illegally accessing police computer files.
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