No Child Pornography
Howell was arrested on June 30, 2008. On July 4, 2008, this headline appeared in a local newspaper. In that newspaper article, then-sheriff Daniel Rodden claimed that a search warrant had been executed and that child pornography had been found. However, no one would have known what, if anything, was on Howell’s computers at that time because the forensic examination was not conducted until August. The report of the forensics examination clearly stated that “no child pornography was located” on Howell’s computers. Rodden also told the media that one of the charges related to the attempted distribution of child pornography, which was also not true.
Ironically, Rodden found himself in trouble with the law in 2014 when he was indicted by a Federal grand jury after he lied to the FBI while he was being investigated for an incident involving a prostitute. Rodden was charged with seven counts of making false statements to the FBI and one count of counseling the destruction of evidence. Apparently, after the FBI interviewed him, Rodden instructed the prostitute to get rid of the items he had given her. According to the indictment, Rodden denied to the FBI that he had given an official deputy's badge and credentials [as well as a sheriff’s uniform] to the prostitute, that he had had a sexual relationship with the prostitute, that he paid the prostitute for the sexual contact and that he had that person's phone number. Rodden ultimately pleaded guilty and received two years' probation, $4,000 in fines, and 240 hours of community service. The day before he entered his guilty plea, however, he retired in order to be eligible for full retirement benefits.
Howell was arrested on June 30, 2008. On July 4, 2008, this headline appeared in a local newspaper. In that newspaper article, then-sheriff Daniel Rodden claimed that a search warrant had been executed and that child pornography had been found. However, no one would have known what, if anything, was on Howell’s computers at that time because the forensic examination was not conducted until August. The report of the forensics examination clearly stated that “no child pornography was located” on Howell’s computers. Rodden also told the media that one of the charges related to the attempted distribution of child pornography, which was also not true.
Ironically, Rodden found himself in trouble with the law in 2014 when he was indicted by a Federal grand jury after he lied to the FBI while he was being investigated for an incident involving a prostitute. Rodden was charged with seven counts of making false statements to the FBI and one count of counseling the destruction of evidence. Apparently, after the FBI interviewed him, Rodden instructed the prostitute to get rid of the items he had given her. According to the indictment, Rodden denied to the FBI that he had given an official deputy's badge and credentials [as well as a sheriff’s uniform] to the prostitute, that he had had a sexual relationship with the prostitute, that he paid the prostitute for the sexual contact and that he had that person's phone number. Rodden ultimately pleaded guilty and received two years' probation, $4,000 in fines, and 240 hours of community service. The day before he entered his guilty plea, however, he retired in order to be eligible for full retirement benefits.