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Department of Justice United States Attorney Julia C. Dudley Western District of Virginia |
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CONTACT: Brian McGinn PHONE: 540-857-2974 FAX: 540-857-2179 EMAIL: Brian.McGinn@usdoj.gov www.usdoj.gov/usao/vaw |
STAUNTON MAN SENTENCED TO 160 MONTHS ON CHILD PORN CHARGES
Clifton Talley Has Been Convicted Three Times For Child Pornography Crimes
HARRISONBURG, VIRGINIA -- An alert citizen who called 911 after observing what she believed to be a man looking at images of child pornography has led to a lengthy prison sentenced for a Staunton, Va. man.
Clifton Thomas Talley, 59, was sentenced to 160 months of incarceration and a lifetime of supervised release yesterday in U.S. District Court in Harrisonburg on two counts of possessing child pornography. This is the third time Talley has been convicted of crimes related to child pornography.
“Protecting our children from predators like Mr. Talley has been, and will continue to be, a top priority for our district,” United States Attorney Julia C. Dudley said. “The individuals who view this material are nearly as culpable as those who produce it. Viewers of this material create the demand for these disturbing images and will be prosecuted to the fullest extent the law allows.”
On July 5, 2008, Talley was at the Staunton Public Library using his laptop computer when another library guest saw what she believed to be child pornography on the screen. Subsequently, the caller dialed 911, prompting police to arrive.
Once on scene, an officer from the Staunton Police Department observed that the defendant appeared nervous after making eye contact with him and began the process of shutting down his computer and preparing to exit the library. Officers approached Talley and asked for consent to view his laptop. The defendant refused. After obtaining ID from the defendant, the officers determined that Talley was a registered sex offender and on probation for sexual offenses and took him into custody.
Talley had previously been convicted on child pornography charges in 1998 and 2001. Both the 2001 and 2008 incident occurred while Talley was on supervised release for his previous conviction.
Law enforcement officials obtained search warrants for both Talley’s laptop and his home. A search of his laptop revealed numerous images of child pornography stored on his hard drive. In addition, a computer disk, labeled “quickies” was recovered from his home two days later, which also contained images of child pornography.
The investigation of the case was conducted by Staunton Police Department. Assistant United States Attorney Nancy S. Healey is prosecuting the case for the United States.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by United States Attorneys’ Office and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), 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 to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit http://www.projectsafechildhood.gov.