Posted on 05/25/2004 6:05:14 AM PDT by Theodore R.
Man gets 75-year term in child porn case
HIS WIFE SENTENCED TO A LITTLE MORE THAN 30 YEARS
By Greg Kocher
CENTRAL KENTUCKY BUREAU
Terry Adkins, the Nicholasville man convicted earlier this year of receiving hundreds of images of child pornography on his home computer, was sentenced by a federal judge yesterday to 75 years in prison.
Adkins' wife, Jane, was sentenced to a little more than 30 years in prison for her role in the receipt and possession of child pornography from the couple's Nicholasville apartment.
The sentencings brought to a close the federal case that was brought against the couple last summer, but they still face state charges related to the alleged sexual abuse of children in Central and Northern Kentucky.
Because of Terry Adkins' alleged attacks on children at playgrounds and in public libraries in June and July, federal prosecutors were successful in their effort to have him receive a much harsher sentence than he would ordinarily get for his child-porn conviction.
Chief U.S. District Judge Karl S. Forester granted an "upward departure" in sentencing, so that Terry Adkins received 45 more years in prison than he would have received otherwise. With good behavior in prison, Adkins could shave up to 11 years off the 75-year sentence.
Nevertheless, Patrick Nash, the attorney for Terry Adkins, said he planned to appeal the sentence to the 6th Circuit Court of Appeals.
Forester denied a similar prosecution motion for a harsher sentence for Jane Adkins. Unlike Terry Adkins, who had been treated for sexual abuse of other children beginning at age 9, there was "little or no evidence" that Jane Adkins had a history of sexually abusing others until she met and married her husband, Forester said.
Adele Burt Brown, the attorney for Jane Adkins, said she intends to appeal the introduction of a statement her client gave to police. Jane Adkins maintains that police did not properly advise her of her rights and that her statement was not voluntary.
In separate bench trials before Forester earlier this year, Terry and Jane Adkins were each convicted of 101 counts of violating federal child pornography laws.
The couple became the target of a local and federal investigation into a rash of sex abuse incidents in public parks or libraries between late June and mid-July in Boyle, Boone, Mercer and Scott counties. Terry Adkins' birth mother, who had given him up for adoption when he was 4 but who had re-established contact with him, recognized a composite sketch issued by police and identified her son as the suspect they were seeking.
Terry Adkins, 26, faces state charges related to the alleged child sex abuse in Boone, Scott and Jessamine counties. Jane Adkins, 34, has also been charged by local police in Scott County.
Tom Lockridge, commonwealth's attorney for Jessamine County, said he would talk with Nicholasville police and the victim's family before deciding whether to pursue prosecution against Terry Adkins. In that case, Terry Adkins was accused of kidnapping and sodomy for allegedly restraining a 2-year-old boy in a bathroom and performing oral sex on him. The child was one of several that the couple had babysat. If convicted on those charges, Adkins might receive prison time in addition to his federal sentence.
Linda Tally Smith, commonwealth's attorney for Boone County -- where Adkins was accused of the sexual abuse of a girl at a Walton park -- said she, too, wanted to discuss the matter with the girl's parents before deciding whether to pursue state prosecution. In that case, even if Adkins was found guilty, his sentence would be served simultaneously with his federal sentence.
Scott County Commonwealth's Attorney Gordie Shaw could not be reached yesterday on whether he intends to pursue the state charges there. But Assistant U.S. Attorney Mark Wohlander said state prosecutors in some cases might decide to drop prosecution so that they would not have to call children to testify at trial and recall painful memories.
When the Adkinses were arrested last summer, federal prosecutors had said an investigation might lead to the arrests of child pornographers in other states. But U.S. Attorney Gregory Van Tatenhove said yesterday that he was unaware of whether the Adkins case led to prosecutions in any jurisdictions outside Kentucky.
During sentencing, Forester noted that both Terry and Jane Adkins had been the victims of sexual abuse when they were children. And of the couple's alleged victims, Forester said: "I hope they won't become abusers."
Reach Greg Kocher in the Nicholasville bureau at (859) 885-5775 or gkocher1@herald-leader.com.
It's in the Bible: the sins of the fathers will be passed on the children!!!
75 years.
Good start.
If he's a good boy, he can get out when he's 90 years old.
Prison justice will shorten that sentence...
Yes, 75 years is a long time for someone to have to watch their back.
Let's hope he lives every day in fear till' he gets what he deserves.
actually - the mother who dumped the kid at 4 years old shares some blame.
But - ultimately this scumbag did it of his own accord - who is the father? - what role did he play?
I've reported you for abuse: There's nothing funny or praiseworthy about prison rape or murder.
I've reported you for abuse. There's nothing "just" about murder, even if it takes place in prison.
Sounds like someone woke up on the wrong side of the bed this morning . . .
Good for You!
Where,exactly did I praise rape or murder?
I am not responsible for your assumptions.
Perhaps it is indicative of the way people feel about child molesters.
Perhaps an easier sentence for them and us would be the death penalty . . .
Abuse? I stated a known fact that prison population does not take kindly to child abusers...
You are hereby reported...
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