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March 27, 2007
Former college dean sentenced to 5 years for possession of child pornography
Defendant also ordered to pay restitution to child abuse prevention center
SAN FRANCISCO - A former dean at a Bay Area university was sentenced today to 63 months in prison and ordered to pay $50,000 in restitution to the San Francisco Child Abuse Prevention Center for possessing more than 5,500 images of child pornography.
William T. Garner, 67, was sentenced this morning to charges arising out of an investigation by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and the Department of Justice's Project Safe Childhood initiative.
Garner, a former dean at the University of San Francisco (USF), pleaded guilty in December 2006, to a single count of possessing child pornography. According to court documents, Garner possessed more than 5,500 images containing child pornography obtained over the Internet, including images of prepubescent minors and images portraying sadistic or masochistic conduct or other depictions of violence.
"Crimes that harm children are a primary target of law enforcement," said United States Attorney Scott Schools. "We will continue to protect the children in our communities by vigorously prosecuting individuals possessing these images. That is our commitment."
Garner, who retired in 2006 as a professor in the School of Education at USF, was also the co-founder and director of USF's Center for Instruction and Technology. He has been instructed to report to prison by June 18.
The prosecution is the result of a six-month probe by ICE, with assistance from U.S. Customs and Border Protection, the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, and the San Francisco Police Department.
The U.S. Department of Justice's Project Safe Childhood initiative is a joint effort between federal, state and local law enforcement, along with community leaders, designed to protect children from online exploitation and abuse. Led by the U.S. 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 www.projectsafechildhood.gov.
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