Former Cohen Milstein partner pleads guilty to child-porn possession
Michael Thomas Dolce, 54, of West Palm Beach, Florida, has pleaded guilty to possession of child pornography. He is a former partner at Cohen Milstein Sellers & Toll. Image from Shutterstock.
A former partner at Cohen Milstein Sellers & Toll has pleaded guilty to possession of child pornography after his arrest as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat child sexual exploitation and abuse.
Michael Thomas Dolce, 54, of West Palm Beach, Florida, pleaded guilty Wednesday, report Law360, the Palm Beach Post, WPTV and an Oct. 4 press release. He was fired from Cohen Milstein after his March arrest.
Police recovered nearly 2,000 images and videos of child pornography from Dolce’s laptop, prosecutors say. He was allegedly downloading child pornography files just before the raid on his apartment.
Sentencing is scheduled for Dec. 18. He could be sentenced to as many as 20 years in prison. He could also be ordered to pay restitution of at least $3,000 to each person pictured in the images found, according to the Palm Beach Post.
Dolce worked in Cohen Milstein’s Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, office. According to a Cohen Milstein bio that has been deleted, Dolce led the law firm’s sexual abuse, sex trafficking and domestic abuse team. He exclusively represented children and adult survivors of sex crimes.
Dolce has previously said he was sexually abused by neighbors at age 7, according to the Palm Beach Post. He told U.S. District Judge Donald Middlebrooks of the Southern District of Florida on Wednesday that he has been treated for post-traumatic stress disorder, major depression, anxiety and obsessive-compulsive disorder, the article reports.
Cohen Milstein said in a prior statement it was “stunned and saddened by these appalling allegations.”
A Florida Bar spokesperson told the Palm Beach Post that Dolce has been suspended for overdue fees. His bar webpage indicates that a disciplinary proceeding is pending, but no further information is available.
