PRESS RELEASE
October 2, 2008
Lexington, Ky. —A Bourbon County man, 27 year-old Daniel Kirk, was sentenced today to 27 years in prison by Chief District Court Judge Jennifer Coffman for producing sexually explicit images of a three-year-old child.
On August 18, 2007, Kirk coerced his three-year-old nephew to engage in sexually explicit conduct and photographed it using a web cam attached to his computer in his bedroom at his residence in Bourbon County. Kirk also admitted that he possessed numerous other sexually explicit images of children that he downloaded off the internet. These photos appeared on two computers, a thumb drive, and in printed pictures, all found in his bedroom. Kirk admitted that his web camera and computer were manufactured outside of Kentucky and therefore affected interstate commerce. Kirk pled guilty in July of this year to the Production of Child Pornography and agreed to forfeit various items used to commit the crime.
This case falls under the Project Safe Childhood initiative. Project Safe Childhood is national initiative that combines the efforts of federal, local and state law enforcement and prosecutors to prevent the online exploitation of children.
James A. Zerhusen, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Kentucky, Rodney Brewer, Commissioner, Kentucky State Police, and Timothy D. Cox, Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation jointly made the announcement after sentencing.
Under federal law, Kirk must serve 85 percent of his prison sentence.
The investigation was conducted by the Kentucky State Police and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The United States was represented by Assistant United States Attorney Erin May.