Clarkston Man Sentenced to 15 Years in Federal Prison for Attempted Production of Child Pornography

SPOKANE—Michael C. Ormsby, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Washington, announced that Christopher A. Knox, age 50, of Clarkston, Washington, was sentenced after having previously pleaded guilty on July 23, 2013, to attempted production of child pornography. United States District Court Judge Edward F. Shea sentenced Knox to a 15 year term of imprisonment, to be followed by a life term of court supervision after he is released from federal prison.

According to information disclosed during the court proceedings, in March of 2010, the Federal Bureau of Investigation and Grant County Sherriff’s Office conducted an investigation of a mother using her children to produce images of child pornography. The mother, Pamela Ortega, plead guilty to three counts of Rape of a minor and was sentenced in Washington State to 300 months’ imprisonment. As a result of the investigation into Ortega, law enforcement determined that one of the individuals she was communicating with about producing child pornography images was Christopher A. Knox. On March 30, 2011, the FBI executed a search warrant at Knox’s residence and ultimately located a laptop computer that contained images of child pornography.

Michael C. Ormsby said, “Prosecuting offenders who are not only collecting child pornography but also attempting to produce child pornography images is a priority of the United States Attorney’s Office in the Eastern District of Washington. This office, together with its federal and state law enforcement partners, is and will continue to be committed to prosecuting aggressively and seeking appropriate punishment for child pornography crimes.”

This case was pursued as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the United States 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. The Project Safe Childhood Initiative (PSC) has five major components:

• Integrated federal, state, and local efforts to investigate and prosecute child exploitation cases and to identify and rescue child victims;
• Participation of PSC partners in coordinated national initiatives;
• Increased federal enforcement in child pornography and enticement cases;
• Training of federal, state, and local law enforcement agents; and
• Community awareness and educational programs.

For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc. For information about Internet safety education, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc and click on the tab “Resources“.

This investigation was conducted the Federal Bureau of Investigation and Grant County Sherriff’s Office. The case was prosecuted by Stephanie J. Lister, an Assistant United States Attorney and PSC Coordinator for the Eastern District of Washington.