Producer of Child Pornography Sentenced to 55 Years

SPOKANE—Michael C. Ormsby, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Washington, announced that Cavon C. Clark, age 36, of Wenatchee, Washington, was sentenced on November 15, 2012, by District Court Judge Lonnie Suko, to imprisonment for 55 years for production of child pornography, in violation of 18 U.S.C. §2251(b)(1); and 30 years’ imprisonment for transportation of child pornography, in violation of 18 U.S.C. §2252A(a)(1), to be served concurrently. After release from prison, Cavon Clark will be under court supervision for the rest of his life.

In February of 2009, in Wenatchee, Washington, Clark sexually abused a 5-month-old female infant and photographed that sexual abuse. Clark then distributed those child pornography images to others on a website for public viewing. Some of those child pornography images were found by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) on a computer in Pennsylvania. Further investigation by the FBI linked Clark to the production and distribution of the child pornography images found in Pennsylvania. At the time of Clark’s sexual molestation of a minor and distribution of child pornography via the Internet, he was a registered sex offender. Clark has two prior 2005 Washington State convictions for possession of depictions of a minor engaged in sexually explicit conduct.

Michael C. Ormsby, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Washington, said, “Our dedicated law enforcement officers are to be commended for networking across the country to make this and other communities safer. Repeat offenders have proven that they have no place in our neighborhoods. We will continue to seek stiff sentences for those who violate the physical and mental safety of our children through this form of abuse.”

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood. In 2006, the Department of Justice created Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative designed to protect children from online exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys’ Offices, 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 identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc. The Project Safe Childhood (PSC) Initiative has five major components:

• Integrated federal, state, and local efforts to investigate and prosecute child exploitation cases and to identify and rescue child victims;
• Participation of PSC partners in coordinated national initiatives;
• Increased federal enforcement in child pornography and enticement cases;
• Training of federal, state, and local law enforcement agents; and
• Community awareness and educational programs.

To report these crimes, visit www.cybertipline.com or call the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children’s hotline at 1-800-843-5678. This investigation was conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Wenatchee Police Department. This case was prosecuted by Stephanie Lister, Assistant U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Washington.