Office of the Attorney General
Barren County Man Sentenced to Seven Years in Prison on Child Pornography Charges

Attorney General Jack Conway announced today that 47-year-old James Payne of Barren County has been sentenced to seven years in prison following an investigation by General Conway’s Cybercrimes Unit. Payne entered a guilty plea to four counts of possession of matter portraying a sexual performance by a minor, a Class D felony, and was sentenced in Barren Circuit Court on Monday, April 25, 2011. He also faces a $1,000 fine and lifetime registration as a sex offender.

"I appreciate the hard work of my Cybercrimes investigators who work every day to make the Internet a safer place for Kentucky kids," General Conway said. "I would also like to thank the office of Barren County Commonwealth’s Attorney Karen Davis for the successful prosecution of this case."

Investigators from General Conway’s Cybercrimes Unit identified Payne as a suspected child pornographer as part of an undercover investigation. A search warrant was executed at Payne’s Glasgow home on July 12, 2010 with the assistance of the Glasgow Police Department.

Since its creation in June 2008, General Conway’s Cybercrimes Unit, a member of the Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force, has launched more than 200 investigations and seized more than 200,000 child pornographic images and videos from the Internet.