Maryland man sentenced to 10 years for child pornography charge

MARTINSBURG, WEST VIRGINIA – Paul Glen Hamilton, Jr., of Bowie, Maryland and Melbourne, Florida, was sentenced today to 120 months incarceration for a child pornography charge, United States Attorney Bill Powell announced.

Hamilton, age 24, pled guilty to one-count  indictment, charging him with of “Possession of Child Pornography” in July 2019. Hamilton admitted to having child pornography that was transported by computer in September 2018 in Berkeley County. 

Hamilton met a 13-year-old West Virginia girl on the app “Live Me” in December 2017. He began grooming her, enticing her to send him inappropriate pictures and videos over several months. Hamilton then met the young girl in Bowie, Maryland, where he allegedly committed additional offenses. Hamilton also allegedly committed additional crimes against the child in Suffolk County, Virginia. Those alleged crimes are currently under investigation in those jurisdictions. The U.S. Attorney’s office is cooperating with law enforcement.

“The defendant committed heinous crimes against a child.  His actions were reprehensible in every corner of a civilized world.  The court’s maximum sentence, including a lifetime of supervised release after his prison term, is totally justified.  Our children are our most precious resource and we must do everything we can to protect them,” said Powell.  

This case is prosecuted as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative designed to protect children from online exploitation and abuse.  Led by the United States Attorneys’ Offices, 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 identify and rescue victims.  For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit http://www.justice.gov/psc/.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Kimberley D. Crockett prosecuted the case on behalf of the government. The Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Berkeley County Sheriff’s Office investigated.

Chief U.S. District Judge Gina M. Groh presided.