Federal judge sentences New Carlisle man to 9 years in child porn case

UPDATE @ 5:10 p.m. (Aug. 6): A federal judge in Dayton sentenced Dalton Konat, 26, of New Carlisle, to nine years in prison on charges of possession of child pornography.

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U.S. District Court Judge Thomas Rose said Konat is in need of extensive treatment and the only way he could be sure the man was going to get that treatment was for him to be in prison.

“Child pornography is a plague. It’s a sickness,” Rose said during the sentencing hearing.

The mother of the victim, who addressed the court at the hearing, said Konat deserved a long prison sentence.

“I pray he can never do to another family what he is done to mine,” she said.

EARLIER REPORT

A New Carlisle man is scheduled to appear in court today to be sentenced on charges of possessing child pornography. Dalton Konat, 26, pleaded guilty to that charge, and as part of the plea deal agreed that the judge could take into consideration that he created the child pornography.

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Konat was accused of secretly filming an 11-year-old girl getting in and out of the shower. Prosecutors said that the crime was especially heinous since Konat had a close relationship with the victim and took screenshots from the video of the child’s private parts.

Advisory guidelines for the charge call for a sentence of 135 to 168 months, or between 11 years three months and 14 years.

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However, the defense has filed a motion for a lighter sentence, arguing that Konat is not a pedophile, has accepted that he needs long-term counseling and feels remorse for his actions. They also added Konat took the video for private use and never offered to sell it to anyone or distribute it.

“Mr. Konat made a horrible mistake that will affect him and those he loves for the rest of their lives,” the motion says. “But it would be patently unjust to sentence him to more than a decade in federal prison based on the facts of his crimes.”

Konat is due in court today at 1:30 p.m.