Child porn law lets some offenders avoid prison

A Denver Post analysis finds that child pornography convictions in state courts have nearly tripled over five years, but fewer offenders are being sentenced to prison.

The Post reported Sunday that judges handed down prison time in only about 40 percent of the state’s 246 child pornography-related convictions in 2013. That’s down from 56 percent of state child pornography convictions that yielded prison time in 2008.

Federal laws are tougher than Colorado laws that do not carry minimum prison sentences for people guilty of child pornography offenses. Only people convicted of the same crime twice face a mandatory prison sentence.

Some prosecutors say lighter penalties can be good for those who mostly need therapy, while others say lack of mandatory sentences lets serious criminals evade harsher punishment.