Karr To Face Calif. Child Porn Charges

D.A. Defends Handling Of Ex-Suspect In JonBenet Ramsey Murder Case

(CBS/AP)  A judge on Tuesday ordered John Mark Karr, the former suspect in the JonBenet Ramsey murder case, sent to Sonoma County, Calif., to face five child pornography possession charges dating to 2001.

If convicted, he could get a year in prison on each count. For now, the 41-year-old teacher is being held in a Boulder, Colo., jail awaiting extradition that must occur by Sept. 13.

The extradition order came as Boulder District Attorney Mary Lacy defended having Karr hauled to Colorado from Thailand for a DNA test that ultimately proved he didn't kill Ramsey, saying the former teacher's predilection for little girls forced her hand.

Lacy said Karr, while under surveillance in Bangkok, was seen paying unusual attention to a 5-year-old schoolgirl – something she called the "turning point for everyone."

"We felt we could not ignore this," Lacy said Tuesday. She said a forensic psychologist told authorities Karr "was dangerous," and perhaps "escalating" toward an assault or worse.

Because of that, Lacy said she had no regrets and no sympathy for Karr, only for his family, CBS News correspondent Kelly Cobiella reports. His father and brother visited him in jail for the first time on Tuesday. They wanted to sell his story and Karr himself had already picked Johnny Depp as the man to portray him.

The district attorney has been bitterly criticized by defense attorneys and by Gov. Bill Owens, who accused her of wasting thousands of dollars on the "most expensive DNA test in Colorado history."

"The decisions were mine," said Lacy, who will be forced out of office by term limits in 2008. "The responsibility is mine, and I should be held accountable for all decisions in this case."

Authorities spent at least $9,300 on their investigation of Karr and brought him to the U.S. after he balked at a more sophisticated DNA test that could have ruled him out as a suspect, Lacy said.

She said her office has checked out some 200 suspects over the years and dealt with "dozens" of false confessions. The problem, she said, is that there is nothing left that only the killer would know.

"As far as we can tell, there is no physical evidence in this case that has not been in the public domain," Lacy said. "The ability of our office or any law enforcement to connect this kind of a person — based on something they know about it that no one else knows — was gone a long time ago."

CBS News legal analyst Andrew Cohen said Lacy and her office "did what prosecutors do all the time. They checked out a lead, spent some money in doing so, and ended up at a dead end. What is different here is that the media found out about the lead, and the suspect falsely admitted to it, and those things turned the investigation into a circus."

As for Karr, Lacy said she will cooperate with authorities in California "to get him convicted, registered, treated and supervised."

"I also know that at least every parent in this country has seen his picture and knows his name so you have some ability to protect yourself against him," Lacy said.

[randyrba]

Can you all (the media) please quit talking about this guy, enough already, let him go to the the butt slammer in Ca. and get his due there...drop it.

[nmitch2311]

Here I go commenting again on another Karr news coverage. As I have read many of the "what do you think" comments, I have come to conclusion many folks wrote that this individual is sick and need to be in an mental institution. In my opinion I think this person is brilliant. This unknown Karr fella fabricated a perfect media attention plan. Think about this for a moment. His plan is doing very well in regard to getting attention and fame. You wonder why I use the word "FAME" . Fame is define as: "a state or quality of being widely honored and acclaimed". This person took a $3000 flight with Champagne and gourmet steaks back to the US. I would definitely say he was being "Honored". My hats off to you Karr in deceiving us and continuing to make mockery fools of ourselves in allowing you to continue giving in to your brilliantly created attention seeking plan. I would assume the next phase is to appear on Good morning america. or simply head back to Thailand. In reality, we have no legal basis to keep you here because you have not been charged and the case against you was dropped. Therefore, you are entitled for another free wide back to your home town. This time, you might want to order prime ribs with a side of cheesecake smothered with strawberry toppings. And ask for a to go box because you might need it for a late night snack after a long night of celebrating of a well thought out plan.

[debbybodkin]

The DA had no choice but to arrest Karr - KARR CONFESSED TO MURDERING JONBENET, A PRECIOUS CHILD. The purity of DA evidence had to be confirmed in Colorado. DA Lacy did the right thing and we can only pray that more District Attorneys nationwide understand that pedophilia can never be cured and unsuspecting children will be placed in danger. Lacy acted in the interests of protecting the public -- NOT POLITICS!

What if Karr was the murderer and DA Lacy let him go free in Thailand to destroy more lives? What would the public be saying then? Damned if you do the right thing -- and damned if you do the wrong thing. The people of Colorado should be grateful that their DA places children before POLITICS. What is wrong with this picture?

[nmitch2311]

To the recent comment 1) "What if Karr was the murderer and DA Lacy let him go free in Thailand to destroy more lives?" What lives do he destroy? By all mean I am not protecting Mr. Karr. However one thing is clear is that he was not known or in existent until he confess to the JONBENET murder than all of a sudden BAM here he is. He was not being investigated nor charged with a crime, no warrant for his arrest or any pending criminal charges. Look folks, we can go all day long saying who was right and who was wrong. We are all sympathetic when it comes to the abuse to children and this is where he using his tactic on the public. 2) "Lacy acted in the interests of protecting the public." I am thankful for this, but as a DA, she is also compelled to gather evidence that support any attempt to prosecute an individual before "BEING ARRESTED" she did not follow proper protocols and laws that are established (Constitution) before making decisions to uphold in the court of law. I am upset that we are spending our tax dollars and is costing us at this very moment on the guy who was not in existent just as recent as a few weeks ago. Come on stop the insanity and humiliation to the public for amusement purposes.

[nmitch2311]

Here way go. Now the State of California want him to face charges of child pornography back in 2001. Unbelievable. this is really starting to get under my skin. What was the State of California doing all this time knowingly he posses child pornography? who's next, the State of West Virginia? when does all this end?

[jdmcgee2]

I pray noone in this world will buy a copy of any book this guy writes. He should not benefit at all for claiming responsibility of the poor childs death. There should be some way to formally charge this guy for pretending to be responsible. In regards to the charges in California, child pronography is disgusting and repulsive. I do not think he is sick and should be in a mental institution, he should be locked up with as many of his type as we can find and put away for as long as possible to protect the innocent.

[bfroggy-2009]

Seriously, the media is milking this story for all its worth + 10000000000 miles more becuase it is and always was NOT NEWS. Just quit it!

YOu shame yourselves cbs everytime you put the word Karr on a headline.

[doctordonut-2009]

http://www.theweeklydonut.org/index.php/category/our-american-legal-system/