Springfield, Ill. - A local man was sentenced to more than 13 years in federal prison today for receiving and possessing child pornography, as announced by Rodger A. Heaton, U.S. Attorney for the Central District of Illinois. Lawrence E. Ealey, 33, of the 1600 block of Henry Street, Springfield, Illinois, was sentenced to 160 months (13 years, four months) in prison by U.S. District Judge Jeanne E. Scott. Following release from prison, Judge Scott ordered that Ealey remain on supervised release for life.

Ealey had pled guilty on May 24, 2007, to receiving and possessing child pornography from December 2004 to December 13, 2006. Ealey used “Limewire,” a type of peer-to-peer software which allows for sharing of digital files with others using compatible “peer-to-peer” software. Ealey has been detained in the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service since his arrest on February 26, 2007.

The investigation was conducted by Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Illinois State Police, agencies participating in the Springfield Computer Crimes Task Force. The task force is a multi-agency group dedicated to the investigation and prosecution of computer crime. Assistant U.S. Attorney Gregory M. Gilmore represented the government during today’s court proceeding.

The case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in February 2006 to protect children from online exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys, 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.