A federal judge on Monday sentenced a 23-year-old to four years and three months in prison for taking nude photos of his sexual encounters with a 15-year-old.
Brad A. Davis of Winchester, Tenn., said the relationship was consensual. He pleaded guilty in June to one count of knowingly possessing material that contained images of child pornography.
But arguments Monday over the appropriate punishment set off a wider debate on the intent of laws and sentencing guidelines aimed at putting away the most serious makers and distributors of child pornography.
“I guess I’m going to jail for being in love,” Mr. Davis told U.S. District Judge Harry S. “Sandy” Mattice when asked to explain his actions.
Mr. Davis didn’t fit the profile of a child pornographer, defense attorney Mary Ellen Coleman argued. He had no prior criminal record and was “truly despondent” over a girl who allegedly pursued the relationship and whom he ended up caring for deeply.
“This is not a situation where Mr. Davis identifies sexually with children,” Ms. Coleman said.
Nothing on the DVD that Winchester police obtained in February, including a video and 22 photos, was sold or given to anyone else, court documents show.
Ms. Coleman also pointed to the recent state court case of former Baylor football coach Willie Idlette, who received probation for pleading guilty to statutory rape for his consensual affair with a 16-year-old student.
If he stays out of legal trouble, Mr. Idlette’s felony conviction will be expunged after five years and he will never have to register as a sex offender, unlike Mr. Davis.
Judge Mattice strongly accused Chattanooga’s federal prosecutors of “intentionally” charging Mr. Davis with a child pornography crime to “distort” the real aim of such statutes.
“My job is to figure out, what do we really have here?” Judge Mattice told prosecutors.
Assistant U.S. Attorney John MacCoon denied the accusations and said his office could have charged Mr. Davis with manufacturing child pornography, which carries a minimum of 15 years in prison.
The prosecution also noted that the girl was 14 when the relationship began.
Judge Mattice ruled, however, that Mr. Davis was probably guilty only of statutory rape and the images the government labeled “child pornography” played a secondary role.
“He was ... having sex with a 14-year-old. I don’t think society gives out medals for that,” Judge Mattice cautioned.
“But let’s face it, some individuals like to photograph their sexual activities,” Judge Mattice noted earlier in the hearing.
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