Child Porn Conviction: Former Little League Umpire Sentenced

FAIRFAX COUNTY, VA -- Donald A. Essex of Fort Hunt was sentenced Friday to 42 months in prison on a federal charge of possession of child pornography, according to authorities with the Justice Department, FBI and Metropolitan Police Department in DC.

Essex's arrest stunned the community last spring when he was arrested after responding to an undercover officer's offer to have sex with a fictional 9-year old girl. The 68-year old grandfather was the former chief umpire for the Fort Hunt Little League. The League immediately terminated Essex' association and reached out to the community about the matter, in a message to families.

Essex pled guilty in September 2015 in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, according to a news release from the FBI. He was sentenced by the Honorable Senior Judge Paul L. Friedman. Upon completion of his prison term, Essex will be placed on five years of supervised release. He also will be required to register as a sex offender for a period of 15 years. Here's more about the case, from the FBI news release:

According to the government's evidence, on May 14, 2015, Essex contacted an undercover officer with the FBI's Child Exploitation Task Force, through a social network site. He continued this conversation via instant messaging with the undercover officer, who purported to be the father of an under-aged girl. Essex then began sending approximately a dozen images of child pornography. He also expressed interest in engaging in sexual acts with the under-aged girl. Law enforcement soon identified the defendant and obtained arrest and search warrants.

In a search of Essex’s home at the time of his arrest on May 15, 2015, law enforcement recovered a computer, drives and other devices. A forensic examination of those devices led to the discovery of images and videos depicting child pornography. Essex pled guilty to knowingly possessing more than 600 images of child pornography. He has been in custody since his arrest.

This case was brought as part of the Department of Justice's Project Safe Childhood initiative and investigated by the FBI's Child Exploitation Task Force, which includes members of the FBI's Washington Field Office and MPD. In February 2006, the Attorney General created Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative designed to protect children from online exploitation and abuse. Led by the U.S. Attorney's 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.projectsafechildhood.gov[external link]

In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Phillips, Assistant Director in Charge Abbate, and Chief Lanier praised the work of the MPD Detectives and Special Agents of the FBI Child Exploitation Task Force. They also expressed appreciation for the assistance provided by the Fairfax County, Va., Police Department. Finally, they acknowledged the efforts of those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Paralegal Specialist Joyce Arthur and Assistant Andrea L. Hertzfeld, who prosecuted the matter.