Sean P. Costello U.S. Attorney | U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Alabama
Zachary Norris, 35, has been sentenced to 262 months in federal prison for distributing child pornography and accessing it with intent to view. The sentencing took place on October 14, 2025.
Court documents indicate that a social media platform alerted authorities to an account linked to Norris containing child pornography. Investigators reviewed the account’s contents and found evidence of Norris discussing his attraction to children with other users and sending them videos of child pornography. A search warrant was executed at his residence, where investigators seized his cell phone. They discovered more than 90 images and videos depicting child sexual abuse material. Among these was a photo in which a child's face had been digitally superimposed onto an image of adult pornography.
After serving his prison sentence, Norris will be subject to a 15-year term of supervised release. During this period, he is barred from possessing devices capable of accessing the internet and from having contact with minors. He must also register as a sex offender and pay $23,000 in restitution to the victims.
U.S. Attorney Sean P. Costello for the Southern District of Alabama announced the sentence.
The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Mobile County Sheriff’s Office. Assistant U.S. Attorney Kacey Chappelear prosecuted the case.
This prosecution falls under Project Safe Childhood, a national initiative launched by the Department of Justice in May 2006 aimed at combating child sexual exploitation and abuse by coordinating efforts among federal, state, and local agencies to apprehend offenders and rescue victims. More information about Project Safe Childhood can be found at www.usdoj.gov/psc, while resources on internet safety education are available at https://www.justice.gov/psc/publications-resources.
