Man Pleads Guilty to Possessing Child Pornography for the Second Time

BUFFALO, N.Y.–U.S. Attorney William J. Hochul, Jr. announced today that Michael Kemp, 37, of Buffalo, NY, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Court Judge Richard J. Arcara to possessing child pornography. The charge carries a mandatory minimum penalty of 10 years in prison, a maximum of 20 years, and a fine of $250,000.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Marie P. Grisanti, who is handling the case, stated that on October 15, 2013, Kemp’s U.S. probation officer found a computer and hard drive hidden between the defendant’s mattress and box spring in his bedroom. The computer contained over 50 images and eight videos of child pornography. The defendant was on supervised release following his July 2008 release from prison for a previous conviction of possession of child pornography. 

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. 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 plea is the culmination of an investigation on the part of officers of the United States Probation Department, under the direction of Anthony SanGiacomo, Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Homeland Security Investigations, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge James C. Spero, and the Regional Computer Forensic Laboratory.

Sentencing is scheduled for February 25, 2015 at 1:00 p.m. before Judge Arcara.  Kemp will be sentenced on November 24, 2014 at 12:00 p.m. for violating his supervised release.