Man Removed From Sex Offender Registry Arrested for Possession of Child Pornography

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FONTANA – A San Diego man who was convicted of possession of child pornography and annoyance of a child in the 90’s was again found taking pictures of young girls in swimsuits in Fontana on Sunday.

Joseph Welsh, 47, until 2014 was a registered sex offender, but was removed from the list after the courts determined that he was no longer a danger to the public. Once that was determined Welsh received a rehabilitation certificate and was removed from the sex offender registry. At around 5:28 p.m. on Sunday Fontana Police were called to a home in the 8700 block of Boxwood Court in the City of Fontana when they received a call reporting a man taking pictures of kids at a family birthday celebration. The young girls, described as “prepubescent” were wearing swimsuits and parents noticed that Walsh was taking photos of them with his cell phone. They confronted Welsh and confiscated his phone until police arrived. The phone was given to police, who then detained Welsh.

Detectives from the Fontana Internet Crimes Against Children Unit (ICAC) were requested to investigate. Search warrants were obtained and served in Welsh’s home in the 2200 block of Tokalon Street in San Diego and at his business location in the 4100 block of Mission Blvd in Pacific Beach. Several pornographic photos of children were found on electronic devices on these properties. Welsh was charged with PC 647.6 as a felony (child annoy with prior conviction) and PC 311.11(b)(1) (possession of child pornography with a prior). Welsh was booked at West Valley Detention Center in Rancho Cucamonga for his charges.

SB 384 (formally SB 421) was recently passed by the California Assembly and Senate, it is sitting on Governor Brown’s desk for signing to change the way sexual offenders are required to register. It places sexual registrants into a tier system. Based on current laws a sexual registrant is required to register for life. Under the new law, if passed, State Congress determines certain child crimes to be “non-violent” and will only require offenders convicted of crimes like possession of child porn and child annoying to register for 10 or 20 years depending on the offense and priors an offender has. Based on the current lifetime registration for sexual offenses, it makes it easier for investigators to track offenders when they commit another crime and keeps the public safer and the community aware of sexual offenders in their communities.