A Muscatine woman, Jessica Rochelle Peters, has been sentenced to 45 years in federal prison for producing and possessing child pornography. According to public court documents, Peters, aged 37, created seven videos and three photos containing child sexual abuse material in July 2021. These included footage of her sexually abusing a minor victim. She then sent these materials to a man in Indiana who compensated her financially. The Indiana man faced charges of felony child endangerment and possession of child pornography; however, the charges were dismissed after his death.
Following her prison term, Peters will undergo a 10-year supervised release period. It is important to note that parole is not an option within the federal system.
United States Attorney Richard D. Westphal from the Southern District of Iowa announced the sentencing. The Federal Bureau of Investigation-Child Exploitation Task Force conducted the investigation into this case.
This case was part of Project Safe Childhood, an initiative started by the Department of Justice in May 2006 to address the growing problem of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood aims to improve efforts at locating, apprehending, and prosecuting those who exploit children via the Internet while also identifying and rescuing victims.
For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit https://www.justice.gov/psc.
