THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 18, 2008 - GRAND RAPIDS, MICH. - Two men convicted of producing child pornography have been sentenced to federal prison for a total of 65 years, U.S. Attorney Charles R. Gross announced today. David Bryant McCorkle, 29, of Galloway, Ohio, received 40 years in prison at his sentencing on September 15, 2008, while his co-defendant, Timothy John Mierop, 30, of Pennfield Township, Michigan, received 25 years at his sentencing on August 18, 2008.

The Honorable Paul L. Maloney, Chief U.S. District Judge, presided over both sentencings. He chastised the defendants for committing such a “dastardly” offense, and equated producing child pornography with “stealing [the victims’] souls.” Judge Maloney commented that McCorkle’s collection of 49,000 images of child pornography was the largest of any case in his experience. Judge Maloney expressed his desire to use these sentences to send a strong message of deterrence to anyone who might consider producing child pornography.

The charges against Mierop and McCorkle arose when, on September 23, 2007, local law enforcement officers were notified by family members of the victims -- six-year-old and fouryear- old girls -- who discovered that McCorkle was photographing the children naked. The investigation determined that McCorkle had come to Michigan at the invitation of his friend Mierop, who knew the children. The investigation also determined that Mierop had taken his own illegal pictures of the six-year-old girl. McCorkle and Mierop were both arrested at the time and have remained in custody ever since.

This case is part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative designed to protect children from online exploitation and abuse. The U.S. Attorney’s Office, county prosecutor’s offices, an Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) task force, federal, state, and local law enforcement are working closely together to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who exploit children. The partners in Project Safe Childhood work to educate local communities about the dangers of online child exploitation, and to teach children how to protect themselves.For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit the following web site: www.projectsafechildhood.gov.

The investigation of this matter was conducted by the FBI and the Calhoun County Sheriff’s Department with the cooperation of the Calhoun County Prosecutor’s Office. Prosecution of this case is being handled by Assistant U.S. Attorney Daniel Mekaru.