Former Calimesa City Councilman Jonathan Winningham suspected of parole violation

By BILL BROWN
Staff reporter

Former Calimesa City Councilman Jonathan Winningham, 52, was re-arrested on Sept. 24, 2008 for violating terms of this probation stemming from a previous arrest in early 2006 for charges of accessing child pornography via the Internet.

Winningham was convicted of 13 counts of penal code 311.1 A-“Bringing into the state material depicting child sex.” Nine charges were felonies, the remaining three misdemeanors.

Following Winningham's conviction and time served, probation was granted and conditional upon an issue of his sentencing. Winningham was required to register as a sex offender and not have contact with anyone over the Internet or even use a computer, with the only exception being for employment purposes.

In late September, the Sexual Assault and Felony Enforcement team, “Learned that Winningham was chatting online, (with a law enforcement adult decoy)” said SAFE team director Ron Garcia.

Sources report the decoy convinced Winningham to meet at a motel in Banning, where he was apprehended and taken in to custody for violation of his probation.

Winningham posted the $5,000 bail and an arraignment on the parole violation was held on Oct. 15. Neither Winningham nor his attorney from the office of Blumenthal and Associates, have issued comment.

Riverside County's chief deputy probation officer, Rick Quinata, said, “Winningham was not supposed to be using a computer to communicate, end of story, period.” Quinata added, “Winningham's 2007 conviction included a 360 day stay in the Riverside County jail and five years probation. He was released early and it's unclear exactly how much jail time he actually served.”

Winningham is currently out on bail and is expected to return to the Riverside County Superior Court, for a hearing on Dec. 4.