OAKLAND — Within the past seven months, a local resident has been convicted of possessing child pornography, charged with having it again, convinced a judge to throw out the new charges, then been arrested and charged once again, court records show.

The tumultuous year for 47-year-old Jeffrey Murdock started back in February, when he pleaded no contest to child pornography possession and was sentenced to probation. Since then, Alameda County investigators say they caught him having it on his electronic devices two separate times. Murdock is now in jail, with bail set at $55,000, and a court hearing scheduled for Oct. 6, records show.

First, in April, Murdock was charged with possessing child sexual abuse material found on a tablet that prosecutors said was his. But after his preliminary hearing, Murdock’s lawyer successfully argued the case should be dismissed. A defense motion says Deputy District Attorney Arya Poorsoltan, the prosecutor, failed to call any witnesses that could establish a very simple element of the crime: that Murdock actually possessed the tablet.

“Without any evidence that Murdock had purchased or registered either device, was seen using either device, or was the only person to whom they could have belonged based on the circumstances in which they were found, we cannot ‘entertain a strong suspicion’ that he possessed them,” a defense motions says. On Aug. 8, Judge Scott Patton sided with the defense and threw out the charges, court records show.

So how did Murdock use his dismissal? According to police, just two weeks later, he was caught with child sexual abuse material on his cellphone during a probation search. An Oakland police investigator wrote in court filings that he noted “indicia” showing the phone was Murdock’s, as well as more than 50 files depicting children being sexually abused, court records show.

The phones were seized during a “release from custody” interview on Aug. 22, between Murdock and his probation officer, according to court records. Murdock was re-arrested a week later, on Aug. 29, and was charged in September, records show.

Court filings claim that Murdock has two prior convictions involving child pornography, this year and in 2002, as well as a 2002 conviction, in Texas, for “indecency with a child.”