A former school teacher was indicted by a federal grand jury today for crimes involving the sexual exploitation of children, announced United States Attorney Kenneth Allen Polite, Jr.
According to court records, on February 5, 2014, Special Agents with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security-Homeland Security Investigations assisted the Louisiana Department of Justice and the Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s Office with the execution of a search warrant in a child exploitation investigation at the residence of DON FRANCIS, JR., 43, a resident of Metairie, Louisiana. FRANCIS has been in state custody since his February 5, 2014 arrest. As a result of today’s federal indictment, FRANCIS will be transferred to federal custody.
If convicted, FRANCIS faces a mandatory minimum penalty of five years and a maximum penalty of twenty years, followed by up to a lifetime term of supervised release, and a $250,000 fine.
U. S. Attorney Polite reiterated that the Indictment is merely a charge and that the guilt of the defendant must be proven beyond a reasonable doubt.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys' Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov. For more information about internet safety education, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov and click on the tab "resources."
This case was investigated by special agents from the U. S. Department of Homeland Security-HSI, the Louisiana Department of Justice, and the Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s Office. The prosecution of this case is being handled by Project Safe Childhood Coordinator and Fraud Unit Chief, Assistant U. S. Attorney Brian M. Klebba.
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Source: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the United States Attorneys
