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Press Release

Charlotte Man Is Sentenced To 10 Years In Prison For Second Child Pornography Conviction

For Immediate Release
U.S. Attorney's Office, Western District of North Carolina

CHARLOTTE, N.C. – Clarence Robert Brown, Jr., 61, of Charlotte, was sentenced today to 10 years in prison for possessing videos depicting child pornography, announced R. Andrew Murray, U.S. Attorney for the Western District of North Carolina.  U.S. District Judge Max. O. Cogburn, Jr. also ordered Brown to serve 20 years of supervised release.

Brown pleaded guilty on September 25, 2017, to possessing child pornography on his computer.  At the time, Brown was on supervised release for a 2005 federal conviction of possession and transportation of child pornography, for which he had served five years in prison.  According to the terms of his supervised release for the prior conviction, Brown was prohibited from owning a computer, an internet hub, or any device that could access the internet, without obtaining approval from the U.S. Probation Office.  On August 15, 2016, a probation officer discovered the computer and thumb drives at Brown’s home while conducting a routine visit. 

According to court records, Brown admitted to purchasing the items so he could access the internet, even though he knew he could not “have the internet.”  A forensic analysis of Brown’s computer revealed that it contained child pornography.  

“This is Brown’s second federal conviction for possessing sexually explicit material depicting minors,” said U.S. Attorney Murray.  “The online exploitation of children is a serious crime and the 10-year prison term imposed by the Court reflects that.  The lengthy sentence also ensures that Brown can no longer harm and victimize innocent children.”

In making today’s announcement, U.S. Attorney Murray thanks the FBI and the U.S. Probation Office in the Western District of North Carolina for investigating the case. 

Assistant U.S. Attorney Kimlani Ford of the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Charlotte prosecuted the case. 

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 U.S. 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.

Updated February 27, 2018

Topic
Project Safe Childhood