Summerville Man Sentenced for Child Pornography Offense

COLUMBIA, SC—United States Attorney Bill Nettles stated today that Lawrence Stuart, age 56, of Summerville, South Carolina, was sentenced today in federal court in Charleston, South Carolina, for possession of child pornography, a violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 2252A(a)(5)(B). Senior United States District Judge Sol Blatt, Jr. of Charleston sentenced Stuart to 54 months’ imprisonment and lifetime supervised release.

Evidence presented at the guilty plea hearing established that Stuart downloaded child pornography from the Internet using a peer-to-peer file-sharing program. This case came to the attention of law enforcement after an undercover FBI agent in New York downloaded child pornography from a computer that was traced to Stuart’s residence. Based on these facts, a search warrant was executed, and agents seized numerous computers from Stuart’s residence. A subsequent forensic computer examination found more than 400 images and videos of child pornography on Stuart’s computers.

This case was investigated by the FBI and brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative designed to protect children from online exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorney’s Offices, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to better locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as identify and rescue victims. For more information, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.