Oregon man sentenced to prison for possessing images of sexual abuse of children

OREGON – An Oregon man was sentenced Thursday to three years in the Illinois Department of Corrections followed by four years of probation after pleading guilty in Ogle County court to three counts of possessing images of child sexual abuse.

Kris D. Stubblefield, 33, pleaded guilty to the offenses when he appeared with his attorney, Ogle County Public Defender Michael O’Brien, and Assistant State’s Attorney Heather Kruse in front of Judge John “Ben” Roe for a status hearing Thursday.

Stubblefield was arrested Oct. 21 by Ogle County sheriff’s deputies after an investigation and search of his home prompted by a tip from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. Charging documents said all the children were younger than 13, and some were as young as 3, with the offenses occurring in August and October.

Under the plea agreement, Stubblefield must serve 50% of the prison sentence and will receive 208 days for credit already served in the Ogle County Correctional Center. He also was sentenced to four years probation on two other felony charges with 13 supplemental conditions to which he must adhere. The probation sentences are to be served concurrently but after his prison sentence is completed. Five similar felony counts were dismissed as part of the plea agreement.

According to court records, supplemental conditions of his probation include completing treatment for sex offenders approved by the Sex Offender Management Board through the Sex Offender Management Board Act, and not residing at the same address, condominium or apartment complex with any person known to be a convicted sex offender or who has been placed on supervision for a sex offense. That condition does not apply to a person who is placed in a Department of Corrections-licensed transitional facility for sex offenders.

Stubblefield was ordered to have no contact, directly or indirectly, with children younger than 18 without a previous order of the court or prior written approval from his probation officer. He also must be available for all evaluations and treatment programs required by the court or probation office.

Another condition forbids Stubblefield from communicating or contacting through the internet anyone younger than 18 who is not related to him or accessing a computer or any other device with internet capability without prior written approval of his probation officer.

He also must submit to periodic, unannounced examinations of his computer or any other device with internet capability by his probation officer, a law enforcement officer or an assigned computer or information technology specialist, including retrieval and copying of all data, and pay for the installation of any hardware or software systems on any device with internet capability in order to monitor his internet use. Stubblefield cannot knowingly use any “computer scrub software” on any computer he uses.

In addition, he cannot participate in a holiday event involving children younger than 18, “such as distributing candy or other items on Halloween, wearing a Santa Claus costume ... or wearing an Easter bunny costume.”

And he cannot be employed or volunteer for any work that gives him access to or authority or control over children younger than 18.

Stubblefield has been held in the Ogle County Correctional Center since his arrest, but he had requested numerous times to be released from custody as his case proceeded through the court system. All of those requests were denied. He also was ordered to pay the remaining court costs totaling $1,200.

During previous court hearings, Kruse argued to keep Stubblefield in custody, citing reports from the Illinois attorney general and the sheriff’s office that he is a registered juvenile sex offender and was in possession of more than 1,500 images of child sexual abuse on his phone.

O’Brien argued for his release, citing Stubblefield’s cooperation with law enforcement, adding that he did not try to elude law enforcement and has no history of violence.

But Kruse said that when police searched his home, he told an Ogle County sheriff’s detective that he was a “purveyor of taboo material.”

“There is a huge public concern with child pornography and human trafficking,” Kruse told the court. “His behavior is why this exists.”