Federal Prosecution Yields Prison Term in Excess of Four Years ASHEVILLE, NC - Ernest Tatum, 57, of Shelby, North Carolina was sentenced to 50 months in federal prison for possession of child pornography, U.S. Attorney Gretchen C.F. Shappert announced. The defendant was also sentenced to five years of supervised release,which will follow the execution of the sentence. Federal sentences are served without the possibility of parole. The sentence was handed down in U.S. District Court in Asheville, North Carolina today by District Judge Lacy J. Thornburg of the Western District of North Carolina.

Indicted and arrested in August 2006 on one count alleging possession of child pornography and two counts alleging violations of the federal firearms laws, Ernest Tatum has remained in federal custody since that time. The defendant formerly resided in Shelby, North Carolina and had been employed by Cleveland County. Tatum entered a plea of guilty to the one count alleging possession of child pornography in October 2006 in an official plea agreement. In addition to the terms of imprisonment and supervised release, Judge Thornburg ordered that the defendant support his dependents through the courts during his term of incarceration and subsequent supervised release. The defendant was ordered to receive psychosexual evaluations both in and out of prison, to possess no sexual materials or media, to not be in any location where he can access any such items, and to properly register as a sexual offender. The Judge further ordered that U.S. Probation officials be authorized to conduct warrantless searches on any computer the defendant might own and that U.S. Probation officials be authorized to monitor the defendant’s computer activities. Tatum was charged a $100 assessment, but no fine was ordered.

This federal prosecution was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood. In February 2006, Attorney General Alberto R. Gonzales created Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative designed to protect children from online exploitation and abuse. Led by the U.S. Attorneys Offices, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to better locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov/.

The case reflects the work and cooperation of the Shelby Police Department and Federal Bureau of Investigation, Charlotte Field Office.