Feb 14, 2008 9:18 pm US/Pacific
Chatroom Sex Talk Led To Ward's Child Porn Charges
OAKDALE (CBS 5) ―
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Former talk show host Bernie Ward.
KGO Radio
An Oakdale police report involving former KGO Radio talk show host Bernie Ward has been publicly released, detailing a graphic online chatroom conversation that appears to be at the center of criminal charges that he knowingly sent and received child pornography in late 2004 and early 2005.
The police report was initially obtained Thursday by the Talk Radio Network through a request filed under the state's open records law. An Oakdale Police Department spokeswoman confirmed the authenticity of it to CBS5.com, citing the agency's "Controlled Document" stamp that appears throughout the copy of the report.
Ward, 56, was indicted in December on three counts of federal child pornography violations. He is scheduled to stand trial in June.
The police report alleges that Ward, using the screen name of "Vincentlio" carried on several lengthy, sexually-explicit conversations online with a woman from Oakdale using the name "Sexfairy."
The report also contends that Ward sent the woman, who later contacted police, photos that he had downloaded of children involved in sex acts.
Ward's defense attorney Doron Weinberg has previously said that as part of research for a book, Ward had downloaded a few images of child pornography. Ward and his lawyer did not immediately comment on Thursday's revelation.
Ward, a former Catholic priest who is now married and has four children, was well-known for a his liberal views on the airwaves. KGO Radio terminated his contract on Dec. 31.
While at KGO, Ward produced an award-winning radio news series called 'Heaven Help Us,' that had explored allegations of financial and sexual misconduct in the Archdiocese of San Francisco.
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Download Police Report & Chat Log (**Warning: Very Graphic Sexual Language) (.pdf)
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