Fancy Photoshop Trick As Expert Witness Costs Ohio Lawyer $300K

For his testimony as an expert witness in child pornography cases in two Ohio state court cases and a federal case in Oklahoma, an Ohio lawyer digitally placed images of two children's faces taken from stock photos on photos of adults performing sex acts. His intention was to show that the defendants may not have known what they were viewing. The FBI was not amused. In 2007, the lawyer admitted that his act violated a child pornography law and published an apology in the Cleveland Bar Journal.  The same year, the children's parents sued him in federal court on behalf of their children, claiming $150K each in damages. In 2009, the trial judge granted summary judgment for the lawyer on the ground that the lawyer was exempt from civil liability as an expert witness.  The 6th Circuit reversed. On remand, the plaintiffs prevailed and were awarded $300K in damages.  The 6th Circuit has now upheld that judgment. Here's the opinion (PDF).