A California Highway Patrol officer accused of having a cache of illegal
guns, explosives, drugs and stolen driver's licenses at his Anderson area home
now faces additional charges of possessing child pornography.
Gerald "Gary" Roland Harris, 45, pleaded not guilty today to
two felony counts of possessing child porn, a felony count of using a computer
without authorization, a misdemeanor count of annoying a child younger than 18
and two special allegations.
He’ll be back in court Sept. 4 for a plea disposition and his
preliminary hearing was set for the following day.
Retired Shasta County Superior Court Judge Anthony Anderson ordered
Harris to have no contact with anyone younger than 18, except for family
members.
Prosecutors originally requested a blanket order, though Joe Gazzigli,
Harris’ defense attorney, argued that was overly broad.
“If he is such a hazard, I don’t understand why it’s taken such a long
time” to file additional charges, Gazzigli said in court.
The case has been delayed several times at the request of prosecutors,
who’ve said they needed more time to investigate the child porn charges, which
were filed Thursday.
Harris turned himself in Friday at Shasta County jail and released the
same day on a $75,000 bond, a watch commander at the jail said today.
Gazzigli, couldn’t comment on the case as he was in between court
appearances, has said a photo of a young girl in a "compromising
position" and another photograph depicting a sex act between a young boy
and a young female apparently were found by investigators on one of Harris'
computers.
Harris, who has also pleaded not guilty to guns and explosive charges,
turned himself in March 2 following a much-publicized Feb. 21 search of his Deschutes
Road home.
CHP investigators said then they were collecting evidence in a crime
that had occurred nearly a month earlier at the Redding CHP patrol office.
During the search at Harris' house, investigators said they found 10
illegal assault rifles as well as an illegal assault pistol, homemade
explosives, methadone pills and dozens of stolen driver's licenses.
Harris was charged with 13 felony counts related to the guns, drugs and
explosives and one misdemeanor count of embezzlement by a public or private
officer for the driver's licenses.
He was freed of jail custody on those charges after posting a $100,000
bond the same day as his March arrest.