Kanawha County Man Pleads Guilty in Federal Court to Possession of Child Pornography

CHARLESTON, WV—U.S. Attorney Booth Goodwin announced that a Kanawha County man pleaded guilty in federal court on Tuesday (November 6) to possession of child pornography. Michael Lee McCormick, 42, of Winifrede, Kanawha County, West Virginia, admitted that on November 26, 2008, he knowingly possessed on his computer more than 600 images depicting child pornography. The defendant admitted that he knew the images constituted child pornography. McCormick also admitted that many of the images depicted prepubescent minors. McCormick also admitted that he shared some of the images with other Internet users by means that included a computer.

McCormick faces up to 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine when he is sentenced on January 31, 2013, by United States District Judge John T. Copenhaver, Jr.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation conducted the investigation. Assistant United States Attorney John Frail is in charge of the prosecution.

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 http://www.justice.gov/usao/wvs/PSCpage.html. For more information about Internet safety education, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc and follow the link named “Resources.”