NASHUA – A Florida man accused of making a pornographic film with a 17-year-old Brookline girl has lost his bid to have the recording and other evidence thrown out of court.

George Malden, 70, of Fort Lauderdale, Fla., and his lawyers argued that police were overly selective in their application for warrants to search his car and motel room, neglecting to include contradictory statements that would have suggested their information was unreliable.

Hillsborough County Superior Court Judge Diane Nicolosi disagreed, ruling on Monday that police had probable cause to believe that a crime had been committed, and did nothing wrong in detaining Malden and impounding his car while they investigated and applied for a warrant.

Thus the camera that police found in the trunk of Malden’s car, and the recording it contains, may be used as evidence in his trial, scheduled to begin May 9.

Malden and an accomplice, Maia Daniels of Nashua, are charged with manufacturing child pornography, a felony punishable by up to 15 to 30 years in prison. Daniels will face trial separately.

Daniels and Malden are accused of making a video recording Daniels engaging in sexual acts with a 17-year-old Brookline girl, and of taking semi-nude photos of the girl. Both have been free on bail since their arrests last May.

The girl initially reported to police that Malden and Daniels had sexually assaulted her, but Malden was never charged with that, court records show.

Malden and his lawyers, Justin Shepherd of Nashua and James Bournil of Lowell, Mass., had argued that the girl made contradictory statements about whether she agreed to go to the motel and participate in the photos, video and sexual encounter. They contend the girl told her father of the incident only after telling a friend, who said she would report it to police.

Malden’s lawyer’s argued the contradictory statements rendered all her information unreliable, but Nicolosi noted that Daniels corroborated much of the girl’s account, though she said the encounter was consensual.

The girl’s consent or lack thereof is not at issue in the charges against Malden, however.

Although persons 16 and older can legally consent to sexual activity, the state’s child pornography law prohibits pornography depicting persons younger than 18, regardless of consent.

The girl went to Motel 6 with Malden and Daniels after meeting them outside a Nashua tanning salon, where Malden struck up a conversation, police said.

The girl told her father she was coerced by threats to go with them to the motel, but made no mention of threats or force when interviewed by Nashua police Detective Daniel Archambault, and she acknowledged she didn’t try to flee when she had the chance, the lawyers argue.

Police stopped Malden just outside the motel based on the girl’s description, detained him and impounded his car. Daniels was arrested after the girl identified her from a photo array, according to court records.

Andrew Wolfe can be reached at 594-6410 or awolfe@nashuatelegraph.com.