Local News

Man faces charges in porn case

By Heidi Bell Gease, Journal Staff Writer | Saturday, April 17, 2004

RAPID CITY - A rural Rapid City man has been charged with possessing child pornography after he allegedly corresponded over the Internet with a police officer posing as a 14-year-old boy.

James R. Whittemore, 49, could face a maximum of 10 years in prison and a $10,000 fine if convicted.

Related Stories
Most Popular

Cheap Car Insurance

Drivers Pay $44/mo on Avg for Car Insurance. Are you paying too much?
www.Auto-Insurance-Experts.com

Obama Urges Homeowners to Refinance

$180,000 Refinance $939/mo. See Rates - No Credit Check Req.
SeeRefinanceRates.com

Obama Wants You to Return to School

Get Your Degree with Government Grants and Scholarships.
www.classesusa.com

Ads by Yahoo!

According to court records, local law enforcement agencies were contacted in March by a detective with the Keene, N.H., Police Department Child Sexual Abuse and Exploitation Division. Starting last December, the detective had repeatedly gone online identifying himself as a 14-year-old boy.

Investigators say Whittemore, going by the names "ranchmechanic" and "guys4fun," corresponded with the "boy" in online chat rooms several times and relayed real-time video of himself nude during their online conversations. Investigators say he also sent the "boy" child pornography and referred him to pornographic Web sites.

Whittemore was arrested at his home on Jolly Lane after local law enforcement officers obtained a search warrant March 25.

Contact Heidi Bell Gease at 394-8419 or heidi.bell@rapidcityjournal.com

Rapid Reply

Show Comments

2 comment(s)

Send us your Rapid Reply

The preceeding are comments from the readers. In no way do they represent the views of the Rapid City Journal or Lee Enterprises.

The opinions above are from readers of rapidcityjournal.com and in no way represent the views of the Rapid City Journal or Lee Enterprises.

Rapidcityjournal.com provides this community forum for readers to exchange ideas and opinions on the news of the day. Passionate views, pointed criticism and critical thinking are welcome. Name-calling, crude language and personal abuse are not welcome. Moderators will monitor comments with an eye toward maintaining a high level of civility in this forum. Our comment policy explains the rules of the road for registered commenters.

If you don't see your comment, perhaps...

you called someone an idiot, a racist, a dope, a moron, etc. Please, no name-calling or profanity (or veiled profanity -- #$%^&*).
you rambled, failed to stay on topic or exhibited troll-like behavior intended to hijack the discussion at hand.
YOU SHOUTED YOUR COMMENT IN ALL CAPS. This is hard to read and annoys readers.
you named a business or identified a business in a way good or bad. Contact the business directly with your customer service concerns or your praise – they’ll likely appreciate your feedback.
you believe the newspaper's coverage is unfair. It would be better to write Jerry Steinley at jerry.steinley@rapidcityjournal.com or call him at 394-8427. This is a forum for community discussion, not for media criticism. We'd rather address your concerns directly.
you included an e-mail address or phone number, pretended to be someone you aren't or offered a comment that makes no sense.
you accused someone of a crime or assigned guilt or punishment to someone suspected of a crime.
your comment is in really poor taste.