A 31-year-old Central City man has been sentenced to four years probation after pleading guilty in Marion County Court Monday to four counts of child pornography.
As part of the plea, Jason Howard of South Harrison had six other counts of child pornography dropped. He was also ordered to pay a $4,000 fine, more than $2,700 in costs, and not to use any internet connection devices. Howard also agreed to complete any recommended counseling.
Howard was arrested in December 2023 after a search warrant was executed on his electronic devices in April 2022. The charges accuse him of having still and video of children unclothed or involved in sex acts that appear under the age of 13.
Jefferson County Sheriff’s Deputy Bobby Wallace said the investigation began after the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children alerted on photos Howard allegedly had put into Facebook messenger. He said the case took so long to process because of the length of time it takes Facebook to respond to search warrants which is related to the large number they receive.
