Happy Valley Man Sentenced to 20 Years in Federal Prison in Child Exploitation Case

PORTLAND, OR—A Happy Valley man was sentenced to a lengthy term of imprisonment this morning in federal court following his conviction in a significant child exploitation case. Julius Xavier Hexon, 45, was sentenced by Senior U.S. District Judge Garr M. King to 20 years in prison, followed by a life term of supervised release, after being convicted of three counts of producing child pornography, three counts of interstate travel for the purpose of engaging in illicit sexual conduct with a minor, and one count of possessing child pornography. A federal jury returned guilty verdicts on each count following a four-day trial which concluded on July 31, 2009.

“Hexon’s sentence reflects the egregious nature of his conduct,” stated Acting United States Attorney Kent Robinson. “The sentence sends a clear and powerful message to those who would sexually exploit children that such conduct will not be tolerated.” He noted that this case serves “as a painful reminder that there are sexual predators waiting to take advantage of children,” and he urged parents to remain vigilant in monitoring their children’s use of the Internet, cellular telephones, and text messaging. He also praised the high level of cooperation among local, state, and federal investigators and prosecutors that brought this prosecution to a successful conclusion.

Evidence adduced at the trial revealed that Hexon, who then lived in California, repeatedly traveled to Oregon to have sex with a 15-year old high school girl who he met through a cellular telephone company’s social networking service. During at least three of those trips, Hexon video recorded the two of them engaging in a variety of sexual acts. Some of the recordings were made early in the morning, before the girl went to school. In addition, Hexon persuaded the girl to make and send him sexually explicit still and video images of herself using a cellular telephone that he had provided to her.

The evidence at trial indicated that Hexon moved to Oregon in July 2007, and rented an apartment in the Happy Valley area of Clackamas County. His conduct came to light in November 2007. Investigators found still and video images of the girl engaging in sexually explicit conduct on a memory card in Hexon’s “Pocket PC” cellular telephone and on his home computer.

“This kind of behavior is shocking, but, unfortunately, we continue to see this kind of crime. The FBI cannot and will not allow such abuse to go unchecked,” said Arthur Balizan, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI in Oregon. “Our employees have families themselves, and that background drives their passionate commitment to doing everything possible to help protect the vulnerable children in our community.”

This case was investigated by the Salem Police Department and the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Gary Sussman and Stacie Beckerman.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), 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 to identify and rescue victims.  For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.