Scranton Man Convicted For Production Of Child Pornography And Attempted Witness Intimidation

 SCRANTON- The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced that John Lewis Kramer, age 36, of Scranton, Pennsylvania, was convicted on July 7, 2021, by United States District Court Judge Malachy E. Mannion for production of child pornography and attempted witness tampering.

According to Acting United States Attorney Bruce D. Brandler, during the two-day bench trial, the Government presented evidence that Kramer produced images and videos of child pornography between March 1, 2019 and March 27, 2020.  Also, on January 22, 2021, Kramer sent a letter to the victim’s mother threatening to have her arrested and put in jail.

The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the Scranton Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jenny P. Roberts and Special Assistant United States Attorney Brian Gallagher are prosecuting the case.

A sentence following a finding of guilt is imposed by the Judge after consideration of the applicable federal sentencing statutes and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines.

Kramer faces a mandatory minimum 15-year sentence. And the maximum penalty under federal law for this offense is 30 years of imprisonment, a term of supervised release following imprisonment, and a fine. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the Judge is also required to consider and weigh a number of factors, including the nature, circumstances and seriousness of the offense; the history and characteristics of the defendant; and the need to punish the defendant, protect the public and provide for the defendant's educational, vocational and medical needs. For these reasons, the statutory maximum penalty for the offense is not an accurate indicator of the potential sentence for a specific defendant.