By Zachary Margulis-Ohnuma
Does putting an illegal image in a shared folder on LimeWire or 360Share constitute “distribution” of child pornography if there is no proof anyone actually downloaded the image? No, according to a new decision in the Third Circuit Court of Appeals. In United States v. David George Husmann, the appellate court reversed a child porn distribution conviction where the government proved that the material was made available on filing sharing services, but was unable to show that the illegal images were ever downloaded by anyone. Accordingly, no “distribution” had occurred. The decision is especially significant because the penalty for distribution is a five-year mandatory minimum period of incarceration. The case was remanded for re-sentencing.