Northeast Texas Sex Offender Guilty Of Again Possessing Child Pornography

TEXARKANA, Texas – A 60-year-old Bowie County man has pleaded guilty to possessing child pornography in the Eastern District of Texas, announced U.S. Attorney Stephen J. Cox.

William Johnson Springer pleaded guilty to possessing child pornography before U.S. Magistrate Judge Caroline M. Craven on Oct. 5, 2020. In his plea agreement, Springer agreed to pay restitution to his victims, register as a sex offender, and serve a life term of supervised release following his imprisonment.

According to information presented in court, Springer possessed a cell phone, which he used to download and collect images and videos containing child pornography. His collection of more than 600 photos included depictions of prepubescent minors, sadistic or masochistic abuse or violence, and sexual abuse and exploitation of infants and toddlers.

Springer was previously convicted of child pornography possession in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Oklahoma. On Feb. 9, 2009, a court sentenced him to 67 months of imprisonment and five years of supervised release due to that conviction. Springer also has pending charges for failure to comply with registration requirements in the 202nd District Court in Bowie County.

Under federal statutes, Springer faces a minimum of 10 years and up to 20 years in federal prison at sentencing. The statutory sentence prescribed by Congress is provided here for information purposes, as the court will determine the sentencing based on the advisory sentencing guidelines and other statutory factors. The court will schedule a sentencing hearing after completing a presentence investigation by the U.S. Probation Office.

The Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice, brings this case in part. Leading the Project Safe Childhood is the United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS). Also, 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 to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.

The Texarkana Resident Agency of the Dallas Field Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation investigated the case, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Jonathan R. Hornok prosecuted.