Lansing Man Sentenced to 12 Years for E-Mailing Child Pornography

GRAND RAPIDS, MI—Shawn McKenzie Smith, 43, of Lansing, Michigan, received 12 years in prison for distributing child pornography, U.S. Attorney Donald A. Davis announced today. Upon his release from prison, Smith will spend 8 years under supervised release.

FBI identified Smith as an individual who was receiving and sharing hundreds of images of child pornography via e-mail. FBI executed a search warrant on his home and recovered a collection of hundreds of images of child pornography. Smith was indicted on November 26, 2008, on four charges related to the distribution and possession of child pornography. On February 19, 2009, Smith entered a plea of guilty to distributing illegal images.

Chief U.S. District Judge Paul L. Maloney presided over the sentencing. Judge Maloney expressed his concern for the victims of child pornography and noted that each image represented the sexual abuse of a real child. In imposing the 12-year sentence, Judge Maloney announced his desire to send a message of deterrence to others who might consider sexually exploiting children by possessing and distributing child pornography.

This case is part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative designed to protect children from online exploitation and abuse. The U.S. Attorney’s Office, county prosecutors’ offices, an Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) task force, federal, state, and local law enforcement are working closely together to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who exploit children. The partners in Project Safe Childhood work to educate local communities about the dangers of online child exploitation, and to teach children how to protect themselves. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit the following web site: www.projectsafechildhood.gov.

The investigation of this matter was conducted by the FBI. Prosecution of this case was handled by Assistant U.S. Attorney Daniel Mekaru.