Dallas Man Sentenced to Eight Years in Federal Prison on Child Pornography Conviction

DALLAS—Timothy Honnoll, 39, of Dallas, who pleaded guilty in November to an information charging receipt of child pornography, was sentenced to eight years in prison today by U.S. District Judge David C. Godbey, announced U.S. Attorney James T. Jacks, of the Northern District of Texas. Honnoll, who has been on bond, must surrender to the Bureau of Prisons on May 16, 2011, to begin serving his sentence. Judge Godbey also ordered that he serve a lifetime of supervised release following that imprisonment.

According to documents filed in the case, Honnoll admitted using a peer-to-peer file-sharing program on his computer to download several movies and still images of child pornography. Honnoll also admits that the child pornography included bondage and other sadistic acts involving minors.

The investigation began in Florida, where an FBI agent, working in an undercover capacity, and using a file-sharing software, viewed and downloaded more than 20 files of child pornography from a user, later identified as Honnoll. A federal search warrant was later executed at Honnoll’s residence in Dallas and during the course of that search, Honnoll admitted that he had received and transported child pornography using peer-to peer software. He admitted that he had been collecting child pornography for two years and that it sexually aroused him. The FBI found 600 images and 180 videos of child pornography on Honnoll’s computer and related storage media.

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 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 http://www.projectsafechildhood.gov.

The case was investigated by the FBI and prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Camille Sparks.