Home Charlotte Press Releases 2010 Paul Lawrence Berrell Pleads Guilty to Federal Charge of Production of Child Pornography
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Paul Lawrence Berrell Pleads Guilty to Federal Charge of Production of Child Pornography
Federal Defendant Now Facing no Less Than 15 Years in Prison

U.S. Attorney’s Office March 11, 2010
  • Western District of North Carolina (704) 344-6222

ASHEVILLE, NC—Paul Lawrence Berrell, 29, of Asheville, entered a guilty plea today in U.S. District Court in Asheville to a single criminal count of production of child pornography U.S. Attorney Edward R. Ryan of the Western District of North Carolina announced.

Berrell faces a mandatory minimum term of 15 years in prison up to a statutory maximum of 30 years in prison, a $250,000 fine, or both, and the potential of a life term of supervised release.

According to court documents, on or about April 23, 2009, Paul Lawrence Berrell coerced a minor to engage in sexually explicit conduct for the purpose of producing a visual depiction of the conduct.

The U.S. Attorney for the Western District of North Carolina is joined in making today’s announcement by Chief William Hogan of the Asheville Police Department and FBI Special Agent in Charge Owen D. Harris.

The case was investigated by officers of the Asheville Police Department, with support provided by the FBI. The prosecution is being handled by Assistant U.S. Attorney David A. Thorneloe of the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Asheville.

The case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to better locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who exploit children in any way, including via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.

Paul Lawrence Berrell is presently in federal custody in the Western District of North Carolina. A date for the sentencing of Defendant Berrell has not yet been set by the court.

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