United States v. Meek, No. 21-3588 (6th Cir. 2022)
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Meek was fired from his job when “pictures of young girls in underwear” were discovered on his work computer. Upon receiving a tip from Meek’s former co-worker, FBI agents verified that Meek’s email contained partially clothed images of girls and found eight images and two videos of child pornography on Meek’s other electronic devices. Meek admitted to viewing child pornography for several years and to downloading child pornography from peer-to-peer file-sharing networks, and that he may have “inadvertently shared and traded it.”
Meek pled guilty to receiving and distributing child pornography, 18 U.S.C. 2252(a)(2) and possessing child pornography, 2252A(a)(5)(B). He sought a two-level reduction in his offense level under U.S.S.G. 2G2.2(b)(1) because his conduct was limited to receiving or soliciting child pornography. The district court disagreed and settled on a Guidelines range of 97-121 months, then varied downwards, sentencing Meek to 87 months’ imprisonment, with two mandatory $5,000 special assessments (one for each count of conviction) under the Justice for Victims of Trafficking Act, 18 U.S.C. 3014. The Sixth Circuit affirmed. A defendant is not necessarily entitled to the two-level reduction just because he did not receive the enhancement for distribution; it is conceivable that a defendant could unknowingly distribute child pornography. The district court stated that it reviewed the PSR description of Meek’s financial situation and was aware of Meek’s financial circumstances before imposing the special assessment.
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