A former Eaton County sheriff’s corrections deputy was sentenced to 17½ years in federal prison for distributing child pornography.
Ethan Eversman, 25, of Ionia, in May solicited sexually explicit videos of a 15-year-old New York girl.
The girl created videos and sent them to Eversman. A month later, according to a plea agreement, he sent two of them to another Kik user.
He was initially also charged with sexual exploitation of a minor for allegedly convincing the girl to send sexually explicit images over the course of three years, beginning in 2021, court records said.
Related: Former Michigan corrections officer accused of exploiting young girl in New York
The investigation “reinforces the FBI’s unwavering commitment to enforcing the highest standards of integrity in law enforcement,” Cheyvoryea Gibson, special agent in charge of the FBI in Michigan, said in a statement.
The FBI and Michigan State Police investigated.
U.S. District Judge Hala Jarbou in Lansing sentenced Eversman.
His attorney, Mikayla Hamilton, wrote in court documents that Eversman immediately admitted his guilt and said he was “’really lonely’” and “’had an issue.’”
She asked for Eversman to be sentenced below advisory sentencing guidelines.
“Although Ethan was 24 years old at the time of his conduct, he was a young 24, as his emotional and sexual maturity level was significantly younger,” she wrote. “This immaturity or youthfulness played a critical role in his poor decision-making and inability to comprehend the long-term consequences of his actions fully.”
She said a therapist determined that he is a low risk to re-offend.
“He has no sexual interest in children and showed no signs of psychopathy,” she wrote.
She said he wanted to join the military after high school but had suffered several concussions playing football, leading to confusional migraines.
He got his “dream job” at the Sheriff’s Department.
“Ethan has acknowledged that he made terrible decisions following his breakup (with a girlfriend) that led him to engage in behavior for which he will be eternally sorry. He became obsessed with pornography, and that included child pornography. He also engaged in inappropriate sexting behavior, for which he is particularly ashamed.”
The judge sentenced Eversman, who had no previous criminal history, to the lower end of sentencing guidelines.
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