Danielle Carr
(PCSD file photo)
By Patti Weaver
(Stillwater, Okla.) — A Payne County jury composed of six women and six men deliberated for about three and one-half hours before convicting a Stillwater woman of possessing child pornography, distributing it and engaging in bestiality.
Jurors recommended five years in prison for possessing child pornography, nine years for forwarding it to others, and six months for having sexual contact with the family dog for Danielle Marie Carr, 29, at the close of a three-day trial last week.
Carr, who had been arrested outside a childcare center on March 10, 2022, by Stillwater Police Detectives Stephanie Wheeler and Sherae LeJeune, remains jailed pending her sentencing on Oct. 17 before Payne County Associate District Judge Michael Kulling.
An investigation began on Jan. 4, 2022, when Stillwater police received a cyber tip from Kik, a social media website, that an individual had sent apparent child sexual abuse material, an affidavit said. Carr was identified by her Facebook account photo after search warrants were served for her Kik account, email address and IP address, an affidavit said.
At the trial, jurors were shown a 90-minute video interview at the Stillwater Police Department in which Carr repeatedly sobbed and insisted “I am not a liar,” though at one point she apologized to Detective Wheeler by saying, “I’m sorry I lied to you.”
When she was arrested, Carr had been working for a few weeks at a Stillwater nursing home but had previously been employed at a childcare facility. Repeatedly expressing concern about her own children, three girls and a boy, Carr said, “I’m scared of what’s happening.”
Detective Wheeler told her, “I have videos and pictures that were sent to you. In those pictures, there are also pictures of you. There was also a picture of two little kids that were inappropriate.”
Carr insisted, “I would never put my children in harm. I would never have child pornography or anything like that,” but she eventually admitted that she had a Kik account for a month or so. She said she just wanted attention in a chat room.
Asked how she first received child pornography, Carr said, “That social media thing,” and insisted she didn’t view the child pornography but shared it. She emphasized she never took pictures of her own children.
Questioned by Detective Wheeler about how she felt sending the child pornography, Carr said, “I got attention.”
When the detective told her, “You know somebody’s child is being victimized. Were there things you did for the attention? I’m concerned with your dog.”
Carr said, “I remember that,” and explained she was trying to please others: “They wanted it. It was more attention. All I wanted was attention. I would never do anything to hurt my kids.” Near the close of the interview, Carr was sobbing and saying, “I’m going to jail.”
Carr insisted, “I’ve never been in trouble in my life. Please make sure nothing happens to my children.”
Detective LeJeune responded, “That’s why we do what we do is make sure the kids are okay.”
The judge then closed the courtroom to the public, including this reporter, when the alleged pornography was shown to the jury.
In her closing argument, prosecutor Erica Garuccio told the jury that for a conviction, “It is not necessary that she actually saw it. She just needs to know what it was. Ms. Carr possessed and eventually forwarded it multiple times. Ms. Carr is not stopping communicating with these other users. Those images and videos speak for themselves.
“Ms. Carr shared at least 21 different times to 15 different people. About the bestiality, the four pictures speak for themselves. Ms. Carr admits this is her. The family pet dog was involved.
“Her actions speak, not her excuses. There are three children identified in this case. These are real children. Ms. Carr seemed very concerned about her children. What about the children in these videos?”
Her court-appointed defense attorney Virginia Banks told the jury in her closing argument, “She admits she’s been on Kik. She’s embarrassed about it. She’s afraid to bring men into her house,” since the father of one of her own children had been convicted of beating a child.
“She said she did not see child pornography. You don’t know how old these children are. You don’t know where they are. Danielle is a young woman — she has four young children.”
In the final closing argument, prosecutor Debra Vincent said, “What we’ve been hearing at this trial is a dirty reality of our world. She knows they are child pornography. She says they are disgusting…She said ‘I was lonely. I thought it was role-playing.’ You can choose to leave or stay on the internet. You can’t say she was tricked into this.”
