LEXINGTON — A Green County man pleaded guilty last Friday in U.S. District Court to using a computer to entice a 14-year-old Madison County girl to engage in sexual activity.
Timothy Scott Richerson, a former youth minister at Freedom Baptist Church in Campbellsville, originally pleaded not guilty to the charges in March.
He has reached a plea agreement with the U.S. Attorney’s Office, but the recommended sentence in the plea is “under seal and not for public dissemination,” said Kyle Edelen, U.S. Attorney’s Office public affairs.
He originally faced a maximum sentence of life in prison.
However, any sentence following conviction would have been imposed by the court after consideration of the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and the federal statute governing the imposition of sentences.
Richerson, who was 39 at the time, allegedly began communicating via computer with a 14-year-old Madison County girl during the summer of 2007 using MSN Messenger.
During this time, he had two MySpace pages, one of which listed him as a 16-year-old male.
After communicating online, Richerson and the teenager met in person at a fair in western Kentucky.
They then continued to chat online with many of their chats sexual in nature, according to the plea agreement.
Richerson also communicated with the young female, who told him her age, by text messages and talking on the phone.
“(Richerson) repeatedly talked with the 14-year-old female online in detail about sexual acts he wanted to engage in with her,” the plea agreement states.
“The defendant made the 14-year-old female a video of himself masturbating and sent it to her via e-mail,” the agreement also states.
Within a week in September 2007, Richerson traveled on motorcycle from western Kentucky to the female’s residence.
During the first visit, Richerson and the female allegedly went for a motorcycle ride together and kissed.
Six days later, he made the trip again to Madison County.
“They went on a motorcycle ride together and when they were alone together, the defendant digitally penetrated the 14-year-old female and she rubbed his penis,” the plea agreement states.
After meeting in person, Richerson and the female continued to have sexually explicit chats online.
The teenager’s mother became suspicious after Richerson’s second visit and inspected her daughter’s telephone, the plea agreement states.
She discovered approximately 40 sexually explicit text messages from Richerson and called the Richmond Police Department.
After the mother gave police the computer in the residence, a forensic examination found many of the sexually explicit chats and three videos of Richerson masturbating.
A search of Richerson’s residence also discovered numerous computers and related equipment, several CDs, including several pornographic videos, at least one of which contained known images of child pornography.
A few days after the search, Richerson’s wife told police she found additional items of evidence, including a printed Map Quest search from the defendant’s residence to the victim’s residence, a condom and a school picture of the 14-year-old victim, after they completed their search.
Richerson was arrested Oct. 12 in Greensburg by Kentucky State Police Detective Clyde Bertram.
The investigation was conducted by Richmond Police and the Kentucky State Police, Electronic Crimes Section, which is the regional Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Force.
The case was brought as part of the Eastern District of Kentucky’s efforts pursuant to Project Safe Childhood, a Department of Justice initiative dedicated to protecting children from online exploitation and abuse.
Sentencing proceedings for Richerson are set for 9:30 a.m. Friday, Oct. 3, in the U.S. District Court in Lexington.
Local News
Guilty plea in federal sex case
Man entices local girl, 14
- Local News
-
-
‘She wasn’t just a teacher’ : Lambert retires after 43 years at Berea
Scroll to the bottom of the story to read "Love for Lambert: Berea graduates share memories of their teacher," as well as a list of other Berea retirees this year.
Writer’s Note: Brenda Lambert is the reason I write articles today (Class of 2000).
Years ago, a little blonde-haired girl from Rockcastle County gathered her friends to “play school” in a 10-by-10 foot playhouse her father built.
Even at 12 years old, Brenda Lambert knew she wanted to be a teacher one day.
“I always felt like an old person trapped in a young person's body,” said Lambert, who is retiring after 43 years of service to Berea Community School. -
Special Olympics return for 18th year at EKU
Next weekend, the Special Olympics Kentucky State Summer Games return to Eastern Kentucky University campus. This is the 18th consecutive year EKU has hosted the event.
The games will be Friday through June 2. About 1,300 athletes will compete this year. -
Assault charges reduced, dismissed by grand jury
Two men arrested in connection with serious assaults had their charges reduced, and in one case dismissed, by a Madison grand jury.
Jerry Wayne Edington, 34, of Berea Road, was charged Jan. 19 with second-degree assault after an altercation at the Blue Moon bar on East Irvine Street, according to a Richmond police report. -
Dump of the Day
The Dump of the Day is a recurring series the newspaper publishes to highlight illegal trash piles and push local governments to cite perpetrators and get illegal dumps cleaned up. See Page A7 in Sunday's paper to read a copy of the city’s ordinance related to trash pickup.
-
Paradise Cove open through Labor Day
Opening day of Paradise Cove Family Aquatic Center coincided with a spike in temperatures Friday which reached 90 degrees. The facility, located in Richmond’s Lake Reba Park, will be open through Sept. 3. Regular hours are 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Saturday and 1 to 6 p.m. Sunday.
-
Dump of the Day
An old mattress, a car seat and other debris sit Friday afternoon on North Street between Fourth and Fifth Streets where it was first spotted Thursday. The “Dump of the Day” is a recurring series the Richmond Register publishes to highlight illegal trash piles and push local governments to cite perpetrators and get illegal dumps cleaned up. See Sunday’s Richmond Register to read a copy of the city’s ordinance related to trash pickup.
-
Undefeated academic team brings pride to Madison Middle School
Madison Middle School 6th and 7th grade academic teams have been undefeated for the last two years.
The 8th grade team also has done well, having some students qualify to compete at the state level. -
Woman fends off burglar with knife
A Berea woman used a kitchen knife to fend off an alleged burglar early Wednesday morning, and police say they were able to catch the man in the act.
-
Man is indicted on additional sex charge involving teen in 1998
A man already accused of sex abuse in November 2011 has been indicted on a charge of first-degree rape involving a child in 1998.
Charles W. Peyton, 63, of East Irvine Street, was indicted Wednesday by a Madison grand jury. He used “forcible compulsion” to have sexual intercourse with a 14-year-old girl between March 1 and May 1 in 1998, according to the indictment. -
Woman fends off burglar with knife
A Berea woman used a kitchen knife to fend off an alleged burglar early Wednesday morning, and police say they were able to catch the man in the act.
Officers responded to a call in the 1000 block of Scaffold Cane Road about a man trying to break into a home, according to a release from BPD Public Information Officer Jake Reed. - More Local News Headlines
-
Vatican in Chaos After Butler Arrested for Leaks
Jimmy Carter Endorses Egypt's Election Results
Biden Addresses West Point Graduating Class
Dozens of Children Killed in New Syria Attack
Raw Video: Activists Allege Massacre in Syria
NJ Man Charged With Murder in Death of Patz
Support, Fun for Kids of Fallen Soldiers at Camp
Fugitive Penguin Caught, Returned to Aquarium
50 Years Later, Underground Fire Still Burning
Light Show Transforms Sydney Opera House
Raw Video: Unruly Passenger Restrained in Miami
Raw Video: Robber Uses Drive-thru Window
Raw Video: Dragon Arrives at Space Station
Calif.'s Coronado Named Nation's Best Beach
CEO Salaries Become Sore Issue in Labor Disputes
