GRAND RAPIDS, MI—Clint Andrews Williamson, 29, of Grand Rapids, Michigan, received a 30-year sentence in federal prison yesterday for producing a child pornography video of a toddler and live-streaming it to a couple in Georgia, who are currently facing state and federal charges related to child abuse and child pornography. The judge ordered Williamson to pay approximately $3,000 in restitution to the victim, as well as $2,000 in restitution to a child who appeared in a pornographic photograph Williamson downloaded from the Internet. Williamson pled guilty in federal court in February 2015.

Williamson was a registered user of a secretive child pornography website, which has since been shut down by law enforcement, where he posted child pornography and connected with others about a sexual interest in children. The website had discussion boards on topics including bestiality, child rape, sex tourism, and child prostitution, as well as advice on how to molest children and avoid detection by law enforcement. Williamson also followed other online groups with topics that included rape and torture. He chatted with people online about having sexually abused the victim in this case and his desire to rape young girls. He admitted to live- streaming two sexually explicit videos of the toddler to the couple in Georgia. In a handwritten journal Williamson wrote after the FBI and Kentwood Police Department executed a search warrant at his residence, Williamson stated he had done things that he could not even bring himself to write down and described himself as “a monster.”

The victim’s mother spoke at the sentencing and told the court, “The damage he has caused the victim is far worse than anything I could ever suffer. Nothing anyone or I can do can change what he did. There is no going back. No apology will ever be enough. Nothing will be enough. I am left to fear for the future.” She continued, “I pray the victim will not remember what he did and that the trauma will not affect the victim’s future. I pray, and I wait.”

U.S. District Judge Janet T. Neff handed down the maximum possible sentence—30 years’ imprisonment followed by a lifetime of federal supervised release. In delivering the sentence, Judge Neff described Williamson as “a very dangerous person.” “We need to protect the public, and in particular young girls” from Williamson, she said. Although the guidelines in this case called for a life sentence, the judge explained that she was “constrained by the statutory maximum of 30 years.”

In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Patrick Miles stated, “The FBI and U.S. Attorney’s Office in the Western District of Michigan are working hard to identify and bring to justice child perpetrators in our community. Thanks to their collaboration with law enforcement partners in Georgia, the people who received these abhorrent videos are also being held accountable.”

The federal investigation was conducted by the FBI and the West Michigan Based Child Exploitation Task Force (WEBCHEX), a collaborative of state and local law enforcement in West Michigan. Assistant U.S. Attorney Tessa K. Hessmiller prosecuted the case.

This case is part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative designed to protect children from exploitation and abuse. The U.S. Attorney’s Office; county prosecutor’s offices; and federal, state, and local law enforcement are working closely together to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who exploit children. Individuals with information or concerns about possible child exploitation should contact local law enforcement. For more information about Project Safe Childhood in West Michigan, including resources for children and parents, visit: http://www.justice.gov/usao/miw/programs/psc.html.