Franklin County Man Charged With Production Of Images Depicting The Sexual Abuse Of A Child

HARRISBURG - The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced that David Paul Robinson, age 31, of Chambersburg, Pennsylvania, was indicted on October 7, 2020, by a federal grand jury on child pornography charges.

According to United States Attorney David J. Freed, the indictment alleges that Robinson produced images depicting the sexual abuse of a minor less than one year old (Counts 1 through 3), then distributed those images over the internet (Count 2).  After obtaining a search warrant, federal law enforcement officers searched the defendant’s home and located additional images and videos containing child pornography (Count 3).

Homeland Security Investigations and the Pennsylvania State Police investigated the case.  Assistant U.S. Attorney Daryl F. Bloom is prosecuting the case.

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 the United States Attorneys' Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit  www.usdoj.gov/psc For more information about internet safety education, please visit  www.usdoj.gov/psc and click on the tab "resources."

Indictments are only allegations. All persons charged are presumed to be innocent unless and until found guilty in court.  The maximum penalty under federal law for each of Counts 1 through 3 is 30 years of imprisonment, a term of supervised release following imprisonment, and a $250,000 fine. Each offense carries a mandatory term of imprisonment of 15 years.  The maximum penalty for Count 2 is 20 years of imprisonment, a term of supervised release following imprisonment, and a $25,000 fine. The offense carries a mandatory term of imprisonment of five years.  Due to the age of the victim, the maximum penalty for Count 3 is 20 years of imprisonment, a term of supervised release following imprisonment, and a $25,000 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.

# # #