BATH – A judge midway through a jury trial on Monday acquitted an Augusta man of two charges of possessing child pornography, and said he will allow testimony to continue on two remaining charges.
Michael Douglas, 43, of Augusta, a former Mount View Junior High School science teacher, went on trial today in Sagadahoc County Superior Court on four counts of possession of sexually explicit materials depicting a minor.
Douglas was accused of having images of young children engaged in sexually explicit conduct on both the laptop he was issued at the Thorndike school and on his home computer in Augusta.
The indictments — one in Waldo County and one in Kennebec County — both list the date of offenses as March 31, 2009.
Justice Jeffrey Hjelm granted a defense motion to acquit on the two Waldo County charges about 2 p.m., shortly after the prosecutor, Assistant District Attorney Eric Walker, finished presenting the state’s evidence.
Heljm said there was no evidence Douglas had possession of anything other than the laptop itself in Waldo County and was unaware it contained images of child pornography.
The trial will continue Tuesday on two other counts of possessing child pornography.
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