DAYTON — A Huber Heights man received the maximum federal sentence after pleading guilty to possession of thousands of images and videos of child pornography, according to the U.S. Department of Justice.
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Stephen E. Kirby II, 38, was sentenced Tuesday to 20 years in prison, the maximum sentence allowed under federal law, after he pleaded guilty to a possession of child pornography charge in 2020, a DOJ spokesperson said in a media release Wednesday. As part of his sentence, Kirby will also serve 10 years of supervised release as a registered sex offender.
Kirby pleaded guilty in June 2020 to possessing and distributing over 3,400 images and 800 videos depicting child pornography, the spokesperson said. Federal investigators said he used multiple internet messaging services to receive and distribute the files.
One person Kirby contacted was an undercover FBI agent investigating child pornography trafficking. Kirby was placed in custody following his plea last June and remains in custody.
Federal investigators said Kirby was previously convicted on a child pornography possession charge and had started possessing and distributing the images just a month after serving his first sentence for the 2013 crime.
“Kirby received the maximum sentence because of the brazen and flagrant way he committed his crimes, resuming his criminal behavior about a month after the Bureau of Prisons released Kirby following his 2013 conviction for distribution of child pornography,” Vipal J. Patel, Acting United States Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio said in the media release.
“Kirby demonstrated that nothing short of prison would keep him from engaging in child sexual exploitation crimes. Federal law is set up to deal harshly with repeat offenders who victimize children.”