Judge Denies Defense Request in Romanek Case

Stanley Romanek appeared in court Monday morning for a motions hearing. The Loveland, Colo., self-proclaimed alien abductee was arrested February 1, 2014, on two felony counts of Sexual Exploitation of a Child stemming from allegations of possessing and distributing child pornography.

LPD Det. Brian Koopman

During the latest hearing, Romanek's attorneys sought access to evidence of criminal charges leveled in another case against Loveland Police Detective Brian Koopman, according to the 'Loveland Reporter-Herald'. The detective led the search of Romanek's home in April of 2013 after the Department of Homeland Security reportedly downloaded incriminating files originating from Romanek's IP address. Koopman has been accused of misconduct in unrelated investigations. Elizabeth McClintock, an attorney representing Romanek, argued the information sought would go towards Koopman's credibility.

District Attorney Joshua Ritter expressed concerns that the primary rationale presented by the defense was to determine if their client's constitutional rights were violated. That was not what the trial was going to be about, he added, stating that the relevant question to the jury is whether Romanek possessed and distributed pornographic material of children.  

Judge Daniel Kaup denied the defense's request for information about Koopman. The case against him has yet to be adjudicated, Kaup pointed out, ruling that the court would be overstepping its legal authority to begin questioning and further exploring the relevance of the charges against the detective.

Koopman testified to the court in March that incriminating files were shared using a program called Limewire. A Homeland Security agent reportedly documented evidence of such file sharing from Romanek's IP in 2008 and 2009.

Romanek purports a "space organization," as the 'Reporter-Herald' termed it, was harassing him and putting "disgusting things" on his computer. This was allegedly due to the UFO-related work he was doing. 

Yet another motions hearing will occur prior to a possible jury trial. Watch the case tracking summary to stay informed of court dates.

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