Before his arrest this week on federal child pornography charges, a former supervising attorney at a nonprofit that provides legal representation to foster children in juvenile dependency court earned praise as a volunteer photography instructor at Los Angeles County’s oldest children’s charity.
Charles “Chuck” Aghoian, 61, of Camarillo, who worked at the Children’s Law Center of California, was charged Monday, March 11, with three counts of distribution of child pornography and one count of possession of child pornography. Aghoian pleaded not guilty, posted bail and was released from custody. Neither he nor his attorney could be immediately reached for comment.
According to a federal grand jury indictment, Aghoian knowingly distributed sexually explicit videos featuring children in December 2020 and January 2021. In April 2021, Aghoian also allegedly possessed on his smartphone images of child sexual abuse victims under the age of 12.
At the time of the offenses, Aghoian worked at the CLC, which has offices in Lancaster, Monterey Park and Sacramento and provides legal representation for abused, neglected, or abandoned children in foster care.
Aghoian also previously taught the Fostering Photography program for at least four years for children at Maryvale, a charity with campuses in Rosemead and Duarte that provides a variety of services for underserved children, according to Facebook posts from the CLC and Maryvale that have since been deleted.
Charles “Chuck” Aghoian, 61, was a former attorney at Children’s Law Center in Los Angeles and served as a volunteer during his time at the non-profit, organizing workshops to teach children photography. #LosAngeles #California #nonprofit https://t.co/EPWiUegflo
— MChheda (@MC_IBTimesSG) March 13, 2024
“So proud of CLC Attorney Supervisor Chuck Charles Aghoian — sharing his love of photography with the youth at Maryvale,” the CLC said in an archived version of the 2019 post.
Aghoian, who said…
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