Wallingford Man Sentenced to 12 Years in Federal Prison for Child Exploitation Offense

Vanessa Roberts Avery, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that JASON GORISS, 49, last residing in Wallingford, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Alvin W. Thompson in Hartford to 144 months of imprisonment, followed by 10 years of supervised release, for possessing images and videos of child sex abuse.

According to court documents and statements made in court, in November and December 2018, Goriss possessed four images and five videos depicting minors engaged in sexually explicit conduct.  The images and videos included depictions of prepubescent children, and at least one image of bondage.  Goriss shared some of the images and videos on an internet-based blog.

On February 8, 2023, Goriss pleaded guilty to possession of child pornography.

Goriss previously was convicted in state court of having illegal sexual contact with a minor, and was sentenced to eight years of incarceration, with three years to serve, and 15 years of probation for that offense.  He has been incarcerated in state custody since March 9, 2021, for violating his probation, and also has other charges for sexual assault and risk of injury to a minor pending in state court.

The federal penalties were enhanced based on Goriss’s prior conviction.

This matter was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and the Wallingford Police Department, with the assistance of the Office of Adult Probation.  The case was prosecuted by Nancy V. Gifford with cooperation from the New Haven State’s Attorney’s Office.

This prosecution is part of the U.S. Department of Justice’s Project Safe Childhood Initiative, which is aimed at protecting children from sexual abuse and exploitation.  For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.

To report cases of child exploitation, please visit www.cybertipline.com.