The case of a Galesburg man facing felony child pornography-related charges starts all over, after a Knox County judge did something not all that common in local cases – rejected the plea deal.
Knox County Circuit Court records indicate Judge Paul Mangieri reinstated all four Possession of Child Pornography charges against 32-year-old Brian Gilbert. Two of the counts are Class X felony charges, while the remainder are Class-Two felonies.
Court records indicate that Gilbert was to plead guilty to one felony charges, and the others would be rejected, in exchange for five-and-a-half years in prison.
But Mangieri rejected the deal, after sources say Gilbert tried to claim in court the crime wasn’t intentional after images were allegedly found on the man’s laptop inside his Rona Drive home.
The case now goes to a new judge after Mangieri recused himself. Gilbert could face as much as seven years in prison if convicted.
