Peter M. Black - Guilty Child Porn

A Viola man has admitting possessing sexually explicit images of children on his computer.

According to a news release from the U.S. Attorney;s Office in Boise, Peter M. Black, 63, entered his plea Monday before U.S. District Judge Edward J. Lodge at the federal courthouse in Coeur d’Alene.

Sentencing is set for June 23 in Coeur d’Alene.

Black was charged as a result of a national crackdown on child pornographers known as Operation Falcon. On July 8, 2007, special agents from Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) contacted Black at his home with information from Operation Falcon that someone using his name and credit card number had purchased access to a child pornography website.

Black admitted that he had purchased access to that site and several similar sites, and permitted ICE agents to search his home and computer. In addition to the photos that were downloading and printing when they arrived, agents found five photo albums, 16 envelopes and 17 VHS video tapes, all containing child pornography. The images included scenes of bondage and violence.

Black faces a maximum penalty of ten years in prison. His sentence is expected to be enhanced because of the ages of some of the victims, the depictions of violence, the number of images and Black’s use of a computer.