Stanley Weems Pleads Guilty to Production of Child Pornography

GREENEVILLE, TN—Stanley Weems, 67, of Baileyton, Tenn., pleaded guilty today, in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Tennessee, to production of child pornography. Sentencing was set for April 30, 2012, at 1:30 p.m., in the U.S. District Court in Greeneville.

A plea agreement entered into between Weems and the United States provides for an agreed sentence of 15 years in prison. Weems also faces a fine of up to $250,000 and supervised release for the remainder of his life following his incarceration. There is no parole in the federal system.

Weems used the video and camera functions on cellular telephones to record images of minors engaged in sexually explicit poses and of minors engaged in sexually explicit conduct with adults. Investigators were alerted to his crimes by a victim of the offenses. These allegations were also confirmed by other adults engaged in the offenses, who had been misled by Weems about the minor child’s age.

U.S. Attorney Bill Killian said, “This investigation represents the continuing commitment of the U.S. Attorney’s Office to bring those who would harm the most vulnerable in our society to justice.”

On September 13, 2011, a three-count indictment, which included the aforementioned charge, was returned against Weems by a federal grand jury sitting in Greeneville, Tenn. This indictment was the result of an ongoing investigation by the Greene County Sheriff’s Office and Federal Bureau of Investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney J. Gregory Bowman represented the United States.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood (PSC), a Department initiative launched in 2006 that aims to combat the proliferation of technology-facilitated sexual exploitation crimes against children. Led by U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the Department of Justice Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, PSC marshals federal, state, tribal 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 visit ProjectSafeChildhood.gov.