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Press Release

Boise Man Sentenced to Over 19 Years for Distributing Child Pornography

For Immediate Release
U.S. Attorney's Office, District of Idaho

BOISE – Judd Evans Ballard, 47, of Boise was sentenced to 235 months in federal prison for distribution of child pornography by Chief U.S. District Judge David C. Nye.

According to court records, the investigation began after Yahoo reported that child pornography had been uploaded to two Yahoo accounts. The report was assigned to the Idaho Internet Crimes Against Children (“ICAC”) Task Force for investigation. ICAC determined that the accounts belonged to Evans. ICAC obtained search warrants for the accounts and located several files of child pornography. 

A federal magistrate judge subsequently issued a search warrant for Ballard’s residence in Boise. During the execution of the search warrant, ICAC located a cellphone belonging to Ballard. A forensic examination of the cellphone revealed over 1,000 images and videos of child pornography. ICAC also located evidence that Ballard had used a social media application to trade child pornography files with another individual. Ballard has previous sexual offense convictions.

Chief Judge Nye also ordered Ballard to serve a lifetime term of supervised release following his prison sentence and to pay $9,000 in restitution to victims in the images he possessed. Judge Nye also ordered Ballard to forfeit the cellphone that was used to commit the offense. As a result of the conviction, Ballard will be required to register as a sex offender.

U.S. Attorney Rafael M. Gonzalez, Jr., of the District of Idaho made the announcement and commended the cooperative efforts of the ICAC, U.S. Marshals Service, U.S. Postal Inspection Service, Ada County Sheriff’s Office, Boise Police Department, Canyon County Prosecutor’s Office, and Idaho Department of Corrections Probation and Parole which led to charges.

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. As part of Project Safe Childhood, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Idaho and the Idaho Attorney General’s Office partner to marshal 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.justice.gov/psc.

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Contact

Christy Gunderson
Public Information Officer
(208) 334-1211

Updated June 9, 2022

Topic
Project Safe Childhood