Park Hills, Missouri Man Indicted on Federal Child Pornography Charges

ST. LOUIS, MO—Charles W. Fisher, Jr. was indicted on federal child pornography charges, Acting United States Attorney Michael W. Reap announced today.

CHARLES W. FISHER, JR., Park Hills, Missouri, was indicted by a federal grand jury August 13, on one felony count of receipt of child pornography and one felony count of possession of child pornography.   He was arrested on Monday and appeared in federal court earlier today. The indictment alleges that between January and April 17, 2008, Fisher received and possessed images containing child pornography on his computer.

If convicted, receipt of child pornography carries a penalty range of five to 20 years in prison and/or fines up to $250,000; possession of child pornography carries a maximum penalty of ten years in prison and/or fines up to $250,000.

This case is brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. 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 www.projectsafechildhood.gov.

Reap commended the work performed on the case by the St. Louis County Police Department, the St. Francois County Police Department, the Federal Bureau of Investigation and Assistant United States Attorney Allison Behrens, who is handling the case for the U.S. Attorney’s Office.

The charges set forth in an indictment are merely accusations, and each defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.