Sex Offender Sentenced to 25-to-life for Child Porn Possession
Author: District Attorney
Date: 12/10/2019 6:12 PM
38 year old Joshua Steven Jackson was sentenced today under California's Three Strikes law to 25 years-to-life in state prison. In August 2019, Jackson pled no contest to two counts of possession of over 600 images of child pornography. He had previously been convicted for three prior sex offenses including: continuous sexual abuse of a child, and two counts of lewd acts with a child.
District Attorney Dan Dow announced today that Joshua Steven Jackson was sentenced to 25-years-to-life in state prison for the crime of possession of more than 600 images of child pornography involving sadism or masochism, or having 10 or more images involving a child under 12 years old.
"Although major recent changes by lawmakers in Sacramento have made it more difficult to punish and hold offenders accountable, we continue to issue the greatest sentences to sex offenders like Mr. Jackson," said District Attorney Dan Dow. "This three-strikes life sentence demonstrates that anyone who harms children in our community will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law."
Jackson was sentenced pursuant to California's Three Strikes law that was originally enacted in 1994 for the purposes of handing down greater sentences to repeat offenders who commit serious and violent felonies. Three strikes has been amended twice since its creation, significantly narrowing its use, with the passages of Proposition 36 in 2012 and Proposition 57 in 2016.
In December 2002, the defendant Joshua Steven Jackson was previously convicted in San Luis Obispo County of three separate counts of serious and violent child sexual abuse of children under the age of fourteen. He was sentenced to serve ten years in prison at that time.
In December 2012 he was convicted of possession of child pornography and sentenced to serve four years in state prison.
In 2015 and again in 2016, the District Attorney's Office conducted civil jury trials to commit Joshua Steven Jackson to the state hospital as a sexually violent predator pursuant to Welfare and Institutions Code section 6600, et seq. However, after hearing all of the evidence presented, two consecutive juries were unable to unanimously determine that Jackson met the legal criteria. Therefore, the Court ordered him to be released from custody back into the community in April 2016.
In March 2018, the San Luis Obispo County Sheriff's Office received information that Jackson was possessing child pornography within the County jurisdiction and contacted the defendant. The investigation concluded that Jackson had downloaded approximately 990 images of child pornography and he was prosecuted.
This case was prosecuted by Deputy District Attorney Lisa Muscari who is assigned to our Sexual Assault Prosecution Unit.
For media inquiries, please contact Assistant District Attorney Eric Dobroth at (805) 781-5819.
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