United States of America v. Louis Hamlin, II

Rutland, Vermont criminal defense lawyer represented Defendant charged with possession of child pornography.



Louis Hamlin II, 77, of Huntington, Vermont, was charged with one count of knowingly producing with intent to distribute child pornography that is an adapted or morphed depiction of an identifiable minor.



In February 2019, the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) received a Cybertip that someone at a specific IP address in Vermont had uploaded or viewed an image of child pornography. NCMEC referred the Cybertip to the Vermont Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force (ICAC) for investigation. Thereafter, the ICAC and special agents with Homeland Security Investigations identified the user of the IP address to be Louis Hamlin II. Law enforcement obtained and executed a search warrant at Hamlin's residence in Huntington, Vermont and discovered images of child pornography on his computer.



As part of his plea agreement, Hamlin admitted that he used a computer that was connected to the Internet, a facility of interstate and foreign commerce, to upload and distribute an image file depicting an identifiable minor that had been modified to make it appear that the child was engaging in sexually explicit conduct. Specifically, Hamlin admitted to taking an image of an identifiable child and cropping and modifying it so particular aspects of the image were highlighted. In doing so, the image created by Hamlin appeared to show the child engaged in sexually explicit conduct.



Acting United States Attorney Jonathan A. Ophardt commended the efforts of the Vermont Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force and Homeland Security Investigations in the investigation and prosecution of Hamlin. Assistant U.S. Attorney Barbara A. Masterson handled the prosecution of Hamlin. Assistant Federal Public Defender David L. McColgin represented Hamlin.

Defendant was sentenced to 62 months in prison, followed by five years of supervised release and to pay a $100 assessment.