Jeremiah Chance Stallans Sentenced to 15 Years in Federal Prison for Child Pornography Production

GREENEVILLE, TN—Jeremiah Chance Stallans, 31, of Talbott, Tenn., was sentenced to serve 15 years in federal prison by the Honorable J. Ronnie Greer, U.S. District Judge, in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Tennessee at Greeneville. Stallans pleaded guilty on August 17, 2011, to a federal indictment charging him with producing child pornography. He has remained in federal custody since his arrest on the federal charges. In addition to his prison term, Judge Greer ordered Stallans to remain on supervised release for the remainder of his life and pay a $100 special assessment. The court also ordered the forfeiture of the fruits and instrumentalities of his offense.

The investigation began when two undercover law enforcement agents received images and movies of child rape from Stallans via the Internet. The Morristown Police Department found homemade child pornography when its officers executed a search warrant at Stallans’s home. A forensic examination of his hand-built computer found 254 still images and 83 videos of child pornography. 32 of the children in the images were identified victims. Many of the depicted children were as young as babies.

The indictment and subsequent conviction of Stallans was the result of an investigation conducted by the Knox County Sheriff’s Office, Morristown Police Department, and Federal Bureau of Investigation. Attorneys for the Tennessee Department of Children’s Services assisted in the protection of specific children from Stallans. Assistant U.S. Attorney Helen Smith represented the United States.

“Fortunately, the federal criminal justice system has adequate sentences to punish this type of conduct. The local and federal law enforcement cooperative work, along with AUSA Helen Smith, resulted in this conviction and sentence,” said U.S. Attorney Bill Killian.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood (PSC), a Department initiative launched in 2006 that aims to combat the proliferation of technology-facilitated sexual exploitation crimes against children. Led by U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the Department of Justice Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, PSC marshals federal, state, tribal, 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 visit ProjectSafeChildhood.gov.