A Wayne man is going to prison for sharing obscene photos involving a minor.
Timothy Bennett, 40, was transported from the jail Thursday to the courtroom of Wood County Common Pleas Judge Joel Kuhlman.
He pleaded guilty in April to illegal use of a minor or impaired person in nudity-oriented material or performance; two counts of pandering obscenity involving a minor or impaired person; and disseminating matter harmful to juveniles.
According to Wood County Chief Assistant Prosecutor Pamela Gross, the Wood County Sheriff’s Office in 2022 received a tip from the Internet Crimes Against Children task force that child porn had been sent to a Yahoo address they discovered belonged to Bennett.
When officers searched his Pemberville Road home, they found videos and images of child porn he had received, saved or sent out, she said.
During his interview, Bennett “said some interesting things,” including younger girls were his thing, she said.
Bennett has said the photos of child porn sent to him were by accident and the one photo he sent out he thought was funny, Gross said.
“He still claims this is a big accident,” she said.
In March 2021, Bennett received an image and immediately sent one back. After that he shared photos and videos with the other person, she said.
“These were completely purposeful acts,” Gross said.
She said while Bennett didn’t have hundreds or thousands of images – she said there were 20-30 – what was really disturbing was he was creating images of friends’ children who were in his home and sending them.
“Those images are out there forever,” Gross said.
She said Bennett had started touching children.
“I believe this defendant is on the verge of being a very dangerous person in the community,” Gross said, asking for a prison sentence of 20 years.
Defense attorney Brad Hubbell said that his client has taken responsibility for his actions.
There were 14 pornographic images found from the time of the offenses, he said. The state is attempting to pose Bennett as the worst of the worst.
He certainly had an interest in pornography and in the course of that ran into child porn, Hubbell said.
He added he didn’t believe the videos were of child porn and not all 30 images collected by the state were of porn.
Hubbell said his client took the plea deal because he didn’t want the children to have to testify, he knew there was images of child porn, he didn’t want to face a lengthy prison sentence and he wanted to take responsibility.
Hubbell said in the 20 years he’s been an attorney he has never seen a case with so few images or a defendant with such a lack of criminal history.
Bennett apologized to the victims. He also apologized to his family for taking himself out of their lives.
For 40 years he has tried to do everything right and then made one mistake, he said.
Kuhlman imposed a minimum prison sentence of seven years and a maximum of 10 1/2 years for each of the second-degree felony charges, which were illegal use of a minor in nudity-oriented material and two counts of pandering obscenity involving a minor.
These sentences will be served concurrently but consecutively to the 18 months imposed for disseminating matter harmful to juveniles, which is a fourth-degree felony.
Bennett’s total prison sentence is a minimum of 8.5 years and a maximum of 12 years.
Upon his release from prison, he will have to register as a Tier II sex offender, which will require him to register every 180 days for 25 years.
