United States District Judge Otis D. Wright signed an order to dismiss the indictment, writing, “For good cause shown, it is hereby ordered that: The government’s motion to dismiss the indictment pursuant to Rule 48 of the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure is granted. The indictment in the above referenced case is dismissed without prejudice,” according to documents obtained by The Blast.
We recently reported that a dismall of the case was very likely based on findings by Radar Online.
“When a defendant dies, we generally dismiss the case once we obtain the proper documentation,” U.S. Justice Department Spokesperson Thom Mrozek told Radarwhen asked how Salling’s death could affect the case.
Mrozek also noted that “proper documentation” could include, “to start with, a death certificate.”
Last year, the 35-year-old plead guilty to possession of child pornography involving a prepubescent minor in open court.
Police found more than 50,000 “sexually charged” images and videos of child victims aged three to five on Salling's computers and hard drives after being tipped off by his ex-girlfriends who had seen the footage.
Salling was set to receive his sentencing in March and was expected to face four to seven years in prison.
If you or someone you know needs help, you can speak confidentially to a trained counsellor 24 hours a day at headspace.org.au or Kids Helpline: 1800 55 1800.