Replies

Except computers are not illegal to own, and computers are often shared. It's not the same as drugs, where you would most likely have known that they were in your house/car/purse. It's not the computer's legal status that is the issue. It contains "illegal" files.
It's not the same as drugs, where you would most likely have known that they were in your house/car/purse. How would you be expected to know if someone downloaded a few songs and left them on there for someone to share? It's not as though everyone checks that every day.

Substitute the words "downloaded a few songs" with brought over a few joints" and see how that would sound to a judge. It doesn't matter if it's drugs or mp3's...trust me, a lawyer WILL make that connection in court, and will likely win over the judge with it.

There are many ways in which the two sets of circumstances are highly dissimmilar. Do the joints look exactly like regular cigarettes, and did the person put them inside a pack with other regular cigarettes? The illegal songs can easily hide inside my computer without my knowledge. I could have downloaded songs that I legally have the rights to, then not allowed them to be shared. That justifies my having the program. I could also claim complete ignorance of the way that the song downloading program works. I could plausibly claim complete ignorance that it was even on my computer. I am blonde, all it would take is a little white-out on my computer screen. Nobody could claim that they didn't recognize the funny looking pills or joints in their purse.

Now, it's also really not that plausible for someone to put joints in my purse/car/house without my knowing about it. That's because #1, I don't go around letting people open my purse, and #2, I know very well if someone's using drugs or not (it's easy to spot them, even when not high, and it's especially easy since only people I know well come over) and I don't allow anyone like that in my house or car, because I don't want to be legally associated with it. What they do in their own home I don't question, but it's not done around me. Yes, I have had friends who have started using drugs, and no, they were no longer allowed in my car or house, and definately not near my purse. That is a controlled substance, which is entirely different from them having something that is legal for many people but not legal for others.

It is entirely plausible that someone could have used my computer and put things on it that I didn't know about.

Remember that this case is completely different from anything involving illicit drugs in yet another way. Computers are often shared and used by friends that come over. My friends often check their email, websurf, etc. on my computer when they are over. I do not watch them to see if they are doing something illegal. It is MUCH more likely I would know if they had illegal drugs in my house than that I would know they downloaded some songs and left them in the "share" file.

I think with a competent lawyer, you wouldn't get convicted. If you are attractive and good at seeming like you are a nice, honest and slightly stupid citizen, I doubt it would even make it to trial.