Buckeye principal accused of child luring won't be prosecuted by county attorney's office
BUCKEYE, Ariz. - A Buckeye high school principal accused of luring a child online won't be prosecuted by the Maricopa County Attorney's Office.
On Sept. 9, the Buckeye school board voted unanimously to move forward with firing Buckeye Union High School principal Joseph Kinney. He was placed on administrative leave on Sept. 3.
The Maricopa County Attorney's Office said, also on Sept. 9, it wouldn't be moving forward with prosecuting Kinney due to no likelihood of conviction.
"The crime of luring requires proof that the suspect knew or should have known that the person he was communicating with was a minor (under 18)," MCAO said. "In this case, there was no actual minor; the communication was with an undercover officer."
Buckeye high school principal accused of luring | Crime Files
We are learning more about the law enforcement investigation that led to the principal of Buckeye Union High School being placed on leave. On Sept. 9, the school board voted unanimously to fire him.
MCAO explains more on how undercover stings could lead to a conviction – although in this case it didn't.
"While the crime of luring can be committed when a suspect is communicating with an undercover officer, there must be proof that a suspect believes he or she is directing their communications to a minor. Proving belief or intent is often achieved through other actions or comments. Based on the available evidence in this case, the State is unable to prove the suspect was intending to lure a minor for Sexual Exploitation," the office said.
The undercover officer in this instance sent an image to Kinney, MCAO says, to show that she was under the age of 18, but it still wasn't enough to prove to Kinney she was in fact under 18.
"In order to demonstrate intent, prosecutors require evidence that the suspect intended to follow through and engage in sexual conduct with a minor. There was no such evidence in this case. The undercover officer and the suspect were not in the same state, and the investigative steps normally used to prove this intent in court were not taken in this case," MCAO said.
FOX 10 reached out to the FBI to see if it'll still continue with its investigation into Kinney. We have not yet heard back.