A hearing is scheduled in federal court to ensure a defendant accused of child pornography possession understands the government's plea offer in the case.
Daimen Michael Perry is facing a one-count indictment in the Texarkana Division of the Eastern District of Texas alleging he possessed a pornographic image of a child who had not reached the age of 12 on his computer equipment in April 2018.
Perry appeared Nov. 27 for arraignment on the charge before U.S. Magistrate Judge Caroline Craven. Perry entered a not guilty plea with the help of Texarkana lawyer Bart Craytor.
Court records indicate that the government, represented at the hearing by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jonathan Hornok, did not seek Perry's detention and he was released on an unsecured $10,000 appearance bond.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Lucas Machicek filed a motion Tuesday for a hearing to make certain Perry understands the government's proposed plea bargain in the case. Such hearings are routine when a defendant has rejected a plea offer from the government.
In two cases that received consideration by the U.S. Supreme Court, it was determined criminal defendants had not made fully informed decisions because their lawyers neglected to relay the plea offers from the government. Those cases resulted in heftier punishments than the defendants would have received had they accepted the government's offer.
This type of hearing not only makes certain that a defendant understands what is being offered by the government and the possible consequences of proceeding to trial, but helps protect lawyers from future claims of ineffective assistance.
Perry is scheduled to appear with Craytor for such a hearing later this month. The case is scheduled for jury selection March 25 before U.S. District Judge Robert Schroeder III in Texarkana's downtown federal building.
If convicted, Perry faces up to 20 years in federal prison and a possible fine up to $250,000. The government is also seeking Perry's forfeiture of a Seagate desktop hard drive and an Asus laptop computer.