AMESBURY, Mass. (AP) — Prosecutors have dropped child rape and child pornography charges against a former Amesbury police officer over improper searches.

The Newburyport Daily News reports that the Essex District Attorney’s Office on Thursday filed formal notices with Salem Superior Court that they are ceasing prosecution of 64-year-old David Connor.

The move comes after prosecutors opted not to appeal a judge’s ruling that images found on Connor’s computer were the result of a search that went beyond what was authorized by a search warrant.

Prosecutors had previously dropped a sexual assault case against Connor after a child recanted.


Connor was first charged in 2015.

He was an Amesbury police officer from 1977 until 1991, when he lost his job amid allegations of misconduct and police brutality.

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Information from: The Daily News of Newburyport (Mass.), http://www.newburyportnews.com