(STORY IMAGE:KHQ.COM)
SPOKANE, Wash. -A Spokane Valley man has been sentenced to 15 years in prison after pleading guilty to Attempted Production of Child Pornography charges.
29-year-old James Joy was sentenced after having plead guilty on April 11th. Chief U.S. District Judge Thomas Rice sentenced Joy to a 15-year term of imprisonment, followed by a 20-year term of court supervision following his release from prison. Joy will be permanently required to register as a sex offender.
According the court records, the Spokane County Sheriff’s Office was investigating a user’s MeetMe profile after it had appeared the profile was soliciting images of child pornography. Investigation discovered IP addresses showing Joy was using the account, but he had set it up under an alias name and was purporting to be a 14-year-old.
The FBI joined and along with SCSO, interviewed Joy. Joy admitted he created fake MeetMe accounts for purposes of contacting juvenile females in an effort to produce child porn with them. In pretending to be 14 on the account, he had access to anyone under 18 on the site.
Joy contacted hundreds of minor females, mostly aged 13-16, and succeeded in obtaining nude photos of 10 of them. He enjoyed the adrenaline rush, though he knew it was wrong. Joy threatened to distribute the pornographic images he had received to victim’s family members and friends through social media unless they produced more. Joy also used Kik Messenger and Snapchat to communicate with minors.
United States Attorney Joseph Harrington said, “This case is a fine example of the great work that can be accomplished when state and federal law enforcement work together. The United States Attorney’s Office will continue to prosecute aggressively child exploitation crimes that occur in the Eastern District of Washington.”
This case was pursued as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the United States Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse.