PROJECT SAFE CHILDHOOD

Project Safe Childhood is a unified and comprehensive strategy to combat child exploitation. Initiated in May, 2006, by the Department of Justice, Project Safe Childhood combines law enforcement efforts, community action, and public awareness. The goal of Project Safe Childhood is to reduce the incidence of sexual exploitation of children. There are five essential components to Project Safe Childhood: (1) building partnerships; (2) coordinating law enforcement; (3) training PSC partners; (4) public awareness; and (5) accountability.

Unfortunately, the threat against our children is growing. In February 2010, the Department, working with the National Drug Intelligence Center, completed a year long and first of its kind threat assessment of the magnitude of child exploitation. The result of this assessment reports a disturbing trend showing increases, and in some instances significant increases, in all types of child sexual exploitation, including: (1) child pornography; (2) online enticement of children for sexual purposes; (3) commercial sexual exploitation of children; and (4) child sex tourism.

The United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Tennessee is committed to the safety and well-being of our children and has placed a high priority on protecting and combating sexual exploitation of minors. Recently we received an additional position to help prosecute these crimes in our District. Some examples of the types of cases brought by our office through the Project Safe Childhood initiative include:

• David Arron Becker was convicted of production of child pornography in Knoxville in 2007. He had a previous conviction for molesting children in Colorado. Becker worked as a high school umpire to facilitate his meeting of young boys who he then photographed while he was sexually molesting them. These images were then distributed over the internet. Becker was sentenced to life without parole.
• William Arthur Hulsey Jr., was convicted of possession of child pornography in Knoxville in 2009. During the forensic examination of Hulsey's computer media, it was determined that in addition to his possessing many thousands of images of child pornography, he was beginning to devise a scheme to kidnap, rape, and burn a child to death. Hulsey was sentenced to ten years in prison, the maximum for possession of child pornography without a previous conviction.
• Jimmy Sprague was convicted of receipt of child pornography in Greeneville in 2008. He had seven previous convictions for sex crimes against children in state court. Sprague also had a history of portraying Santa Claus at local community centers and schools. A search of his computer media found thousands of images of child pornography and he was sentenced to thirty years in prison.
• Eugene Wade Clowers was convicted of production of child pornography in Chattanooga in 2007. He had cultivated a relationship with a minor female in East Tennessee for the purpose of having sex with her. Clowers then filmed his sexual acts with the minor on videotape while broadcasting it live over the internet for others to view. He was sentenced to 30 years in prison.

For more information about the Project Safe Childhood Program please visit http://www.projectsafechildhood.gov.

Recent PSC cases:

• Rockwood Resident Pleads Guilty to Possession of Child Pornography
• Retired Claiborne County Educator Sentenced to 25 Years in Prison for Child Sex Crimes
• Johnson City Resident Samuel Kent Barnettt Pleads Guilty to Receipt of Child Pornography
• Francisco Martin Indicted for Receipt, Distribution and Possession of Child Pornography
• Carter County Resident Danny Ray Gibson Sentenced to 16 Years in Prison for Child Pornography
• Former Johnson City Resident John Samuel Caskey Sentenced to 13 Years in Prison for Child Pornography