Watertown Man Sentenced to Nine Years on Child Pornography Charge

MADISON, WI—John W. Vaudreuil, United States Attorney for the Western District of Wisconsin, announced that Russell Forsman, 44, formerly of Watertown, Wisconsin, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge William M. Conley to nine years in prison for receiving child pornography. This term of imprisonment will be followed by 25 years of supervised release. Forsman pleaded guilty to this charge on January 22, 2013.

While noting that Forsman had numerous positives in his life, Judge Conley balanced that against the fact that Forsman’s interest in child pornography dated back to at least 2006. He also noted that Forsman took pictures of himself naked in public places and that he failed a polygraph test regarding sexual contact with minors.

The charges against Forsman were the result of an investigation conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and Milwaukee Police Department. The prosecution of the case has been handled by Assistant U.S. Attorney Elizabeth Altman.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc. For more information about Internet safety education, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc and click on the tab “Resources.”