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One guilty plea, 11 ‘Alford’ pleas in child porn case

By Dean Shalhoup - Senior Staff Writer | Jan 11, 2019

NASHUA – John R. Miller Jr., the Nashua man charged nearly three years ago with a dozen counts of possessing child pornography, pleaded guilty Thursday to one of those charges, then entered so-called “Alford” pleas to the 11 others to settle the first part of his case.

Part two will take place Friday, March 1, starting at 10 a.m., when Miller, 58, of 69 Crown St., will be sentenced at a hearing that Hillsborough County Superior Court South officials estimate will run about two hours.

By entering Alford pleas, Miller is maintaining his innocence, or “not admitting that he committed the acts” for which he is charged in the 11 indictments.

He does agree to all the terms of the agreement, which, in this case, is a capped plea agreement.

Under the capped plea, Miller’s sentence will likely end up being somewhere between 3 1/2 years and 7 years in State Prison.

At sentencing, the prosecutor, Assistant County Attorney Nicole Thorspecken, and Miller’s lawyer, attorney Michael Craig, will each present their sentencing recommendation to Judge Charles Temple, who will then impose a sentence that falls between the minimum 3 1/2 years and maximum 7 years.

The investigation that led to Miller’s arrest in March 2016 began when a computer technician, whom Miller called for assistance with problems he was having with his internet connection, happened to observe what appeared to be child pornography on Miller’s laptop, Thorspecken said Thursday.

The technician saw the image, Thorspecken said, when he opened a minimized browser while trying to diagnose the problem.

He went to police with what he observed, prompting the investigation that led to Miller’s arrest about a week later, Thorspecken added.

Craig, Miller’s attorney, told Temple that Miller “wants to accept responsibility” for the offenses, “but he cannot remember” commiting them.

All 11 charges, plus the one to which Miller pleaded guilty, are for the offense of possession of child sexual abuse images.

Dean Shalhoup may be reached at 594-1256, dshalhoup@nashuatelegraph.com or @Telegraph_DeanS.

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