Department of Justice
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NEWS RELEASE
CONTACT: Fred Alverson
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APPEALS COURT AFFIRMS CONVICTION OF FORMER ELECTED OFFICIAL WHO POSSESSED CHILD PORN |
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COLUMBUS -- The United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit today affirmed the 2005 conviction of J. Timothy Halter of Galena for possession of child pornography. Halter is a former township trustee in Berlin Township in Delaware County and is currently serving a five-year sentence for his crime.
Gregory G. Lockhart, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio, Keith L. Bennett, Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation Cincinnati Field Division, and Genoa Township Police Chief Robert Taylor announced the decision handed down this week.
On November 18, 2005, a U.S. District Court jury convicted Halter of possession of child pornography. The jury found that on November 9, 1999, Halter possessed one or more computer graphic files that contained images of children under the age of 18 involved in explicit sexual conduct. He was charged with possessing 50 specific images of known victims and 2 movies. Halter was taken into custody immediately following his conviction. United States District Judge Edmund A. Sargus, Jr. sentenced Halter to five years imprisonment, which is the maximum allowed by the law at that time.
“Today’s opinion from the Court of Appeals affirms that the law used to convict Halter and the evidence presented were solid and sound,” Lockhart said. Lockhart noted that changes in federal child pornography laws now provide a maximum sentence of ten years.
Halter’s sentence includes three years of supervised release after his prison term and a fine of $12,500. During his supervised release, he is to register with the State of Ohio as a sex offender and seek mental health counseling. Halter is currently serving his prison term at the Federal Correctional Institution in Milan, Michigan.
Lockhart commended the Genoa Township Police Department, FBI, the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigations, Department of Justice Trial Attorney Alexandra Gelber with the Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Deborah A. Solove.