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Jury seated in Nashua man’s upcoming trial

Charges include multiple counts of possessing child sex abuse images

By Dean Shalhoup - Senior Staff Writer | Mar 20, 2019

Nashua police photo James Ciampa, 69, of 225 Harris Road, Nashua

NASHUA – Nearly three years after his arrest on multiple counts of possessing child sexual abuse images, 69-year-old Nashua resident James Ciampa appears headed for trial in Hillsborough County Superior Court-South.

The first step was accomplished Monday when prosecutors and Ciampa’s lawyers selected the panel of jurors who will hear the case and make their determination whether Ciampa is guilty.

Testimony is scheduled to start March 27, according to Ciampa’s case file. Lawyers estimate the trial will last three days.

While the case summary shows a total of 20 charges pending against Ciampa – 10 accusing him of possessing child sexual abuse images and 10 accusing him of buying the images – it’s not clear if he will be tried on all 20 counts.

All are felonies, and stem from Ciampa’s April 18, 2016 arrest, which police said followed an investigation that began when a family member “provided information” to police.

Detectives from the special investigations division and the computer forensics unit seized computers, video recordings and media storage devices from Ciampa’s home as part of the investigation, police said at the time.

According to the six-page case file, Ciampa was on the verge of going to trial in March 2017. However, after the Feb. 24 trial management conference, Ciampa attorney Roger Chadwick filed a waiver of speedy trial, leading to the cancellation of the March 6 jury selection.

Chadwick instead filed a motion to suppress, according to the file.

After an assented-to motion to continue the trial was granted in May, the issue of Ciampa’s competency to stand trial was raised, resulting in a series of additional hearings.

The trial eventually got back on track, and a trial management conference took place two weeks ago.

Judge Jacalyn Colburn issued her final pre-trial order on March 8, the same day the prosecutor, Assistant County Attorney Kent Smith, filed the state’s witness list.

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