Temple Woman Pleads Guilty to Possessing, Distributing Child Pornography
A 33-year-old Temple woman will be sentenced later this year after pleading guilty to possessing and distributing lewd images of children
The U.S Attorney's Office, Western District of Texas announced Tuesday that Lydia Brynn Christensen pleaded guilty to one count of possession of child pornography and one count of distribution of child pornography in a federal court in Waco.
According to the Justice Department, authorities executed a federal search warrant at Christensen's home on August 30, 2019 after receiving information concerning the contents of her cell phone. FBI agents and Temple police seized the device, and a forensic search revealed that it contained numerous images and videos depicting child pornography. The search also turned up a number of messages from the phone in which Christensen both transmitted and received child pornography.
Christensen was arrested on November 7, 2019, and has remained in custody since. Authorities say she faces up to 20 years in prison for each charge. She is scheduled for sentencing before U.S. District Judge Alan Albright in Waco on October 7, 2020.
Authorities say Christensen's case was brought before the court as part of Project Safe Childhood, which is a nationwide initiative aimed at combating child sexual abuse and exploitation. Their mission is to identify and rescue victims, as well as use federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute people who prey upon children.
You can learn more about Project Safe Childhood at projectsafechildhood.gov.
If you suspect that a child is being abused and exploited, you can report it to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children at report.cybertip.org or by calling 1-800-843-5678.
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