HINES, Presiding Justice.
This is an appeal by criminal defendant Thomas Scot Edvalson of the denial of his pretrial petition for a writ of habeas corpus. The gravamen of the appeal is a challenge to the imposition of additional conditions of bond for Edvalson.
On September 20, 2012, an arrest warrant for possession of child pornography, see former OCGA § 16-12-100(b)(8),
On April 24, 2013, Edvalson was indicted on four counts of sexual exploitation of children for, on September 18, 2012, knowingly possessing digital images depicting a minor engaged in sexually explicit conduct. See former OCGA § 16-12-100(b)(8), supra. On November 5, 2014, the State filed in superior court an emergency motion to revoke bond, contending that Edvalson had violated the conditions of his bond. During the hearing in the matter on November 7, 2014, at which both Edvalson and his counsel were present, a police detective, who was a certified forensic computer examiner, testified that 161 images of confirmed child pornography were found on Edvalson's computer; that there was evidence that he had been online since November 26, 2012, the date of the bond; that two years prior to the date of the hearing, Edvalson hosted a discussion thread on which he set up child modeling posts, considered in the context of forensics to be child erotica; that he was subsequently banned from the website for posting child pornography; and that Edvalson altered his online username and began to post comments about child pornography, including sarcastic comments about certain child pornography laws posted 29 days before the revocation hearing. However, on cross-examination, the detective acknowledged that he had not been inside Edvalson's house or applied for a search warrant for it; that he had no evidence that Edvalson had a computer, smartphone, or internet-enabled appliance in his house; and that he was not alleging that Edvalson had unsupervised contact with anyone under the age of 16 since he posted bond.
The superior court stated that it accepted that Edvalson was the author of the internet posts in question but despite the disturbing nature of the circumstances and the court's concern, it was going to deny the motion to revoke bond because there was no evidence that Edvalson used, or possessed in his home, any of the devices prohibited in the bond or that he violated the terms and conditions as set forth in the bond order. However, the superior court detailed additional conditions of the bond which would then be in force, and stated that the special conditions of the original bond order would also remain in effect. The court warned Edvalson that although it was not revoking his bond, it wanted to "be very clear" that the court did not "intend for [him] to be on the internet at all or using any computer or electronic devices
On November 13, 2014, the superior court entered its order denying the State's motion to revoke bond and imposed the special conditions to the existing bond, as it had indicated at the hearing:
On November 20, 2014, Edvalson moved for reconsideration of the order imposing the additional conditions of bond, asserting that the superior court failed to provide him with adequate due process regarding such bond conditions, that the court lacked the power to sua sponte impose them, and that the conditions were overly broad. The motion for reconsideration was denied on November 25, 2014. Thereafter, on February 20, 2015, Edvalson filed his present petition for a writ of habeas corpus, alleging that the additional bond conditions were overbroad, unduly restrictive, and imposed in violation of due process. Following a hearing on April 22, 2015, the habeas court,
Edvalson now contends that the habeas court erred in denying his petition because he was not provided with the basic due process of notice and the opportunity to be heard; because the superior court lacked the power to sua sponte impose additional conditions of bond in the absence of a violation of the existing bond conditions or the allegation and proof that he committed a new crime; and because the additional bond conditions were overbroad, unduly restrictive of his liberty, punitive in nature, and without any articulated legitimate government objective or public safety interest which they advanced. But, such contentions are unavailing.
Edvalson raised his complaints about the additional bond conditions in the motion for reconsideration, and pretermitting the question of whether the conditions in the pretrial bond may be challenged in a separate proceeding after the time for interlocutory appeal has expired, see Camphor v. State, 272 Ga. 408, 410(2), 529 S.E.2d 121 (2000),
Hood v. Carsten, 267 Ga. 579, 580, 481 S.E.2d 525 (1997). (Internal citations omitted.) Here, Edvalson had clear notice that the originally-imposed bond conditions, and his alleged violation of those conditions, were at issue with the possible sanction of the complete
As the habeas court noted, the conditions of bond detailed by the superior court at the revocation hearing merely reflected and clarified the preventive nature of the special conditions of the original bond order in light of the new evidence regarding Edvalson's conduct. Indeed, the additional conditions did not constitute unanticipated restrictions at all; they merely helped to effectuate the goal of the special conditions as stated in the original bond order. The plain purpose of the special conditions, from inception, was to prevent Edvalson from having access to children, images of children, and the internet for the purpose of creating, obtaining, promoting, or disseminating child pornography. This reflects the State's compelling interest,
(Quotation marks omitted.) Bennett v. State, 292 Ga.App. 382, 384(1), 665 S.E.2d 365 (2008), quoting Aman v. State, 261 Ga. 669, 670(1)(b), 409 S.E.2d 645 (1991). The special conditions of bond as summarily set forth in the initial bond order would ill-serve this compelling public safety interest if Edvalson could engage in the criminal conduct sought to be prohibited by merely doing so outside of the confines of his home. Thus, the special conditions imposed in this case were appropriate and reasonable under the facts, and therefore, do not constitute an abuse of the superior court's discretion.
There was no error in denying Edvalson's pretrial petition for a writ of habeas corpus.
Judgment affirmed.
All the Justices concur.