United States Attorney James T. Jacks
Northern District of Texas

FRIDAY, MAY 28, 2010
http://www.usdoj.gov/usao/txn/

DALLAS MAN SENTENCED TO 51 MONTHS IN FEDERAL PRISON
FOR FAILING TO REGISTER AS A SEX OFFENDER

DALLAS — At a sentencing hearing held yesterday afternoon, U.S. District Judge Jane J. Boyle departed upward from the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and sentenced Spencer Howard, 56, to 51months in prison for failing to register as a sex offender. In addition, Judge Boyle ordered that Howard serve a lifetime of supervised release. Howard has been in federal custody since his arrest at his residence in Dallas in September 2009, on a related charge outlined in a federal criminal complaint.

Howard pleaded guilty to the offense in February 2010. According to plea documents filed in the case, in January 2009, Howard, who was required to register under the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act because of a sex offense conviction in Nevada, traveled to Texas from his residence in Florida, and did not update his registration.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice, to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by United States Attorneys’ Offices 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 www.projectsafechildhood.gov

The case was investigated by the U.S. Marshals Service and prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Lisa J. Miller.

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