Investigation Uncovers Child Porn Collection; Brighton Man With Criminal Past Charged

BRIGHTON - Seven child pornography charges were filed against a Brighton man with a criminal history dating back decades after investigators found several disturbing files on his cell phone.

Donald J. Herring Jr., 57, of Brighton, was charged with seven counts of child pornography and one count of unlawful possession of a firearm by a felon.

On June 6, 2024, Herring was allegedly found in possession of seven video files of child pornography depicting victims under the age of 13 engaged in acts of sexual conduct with other people. According to a petition to deny his pretrial release, these were just a few of over 100 total images/videos of child pornography found on the same device.

“The Defendant has engaged in an ongoing pattern of criminal activity where he would receive links to files of Child Pornography on Snapchat and download them to his cloud storage on his cell phone,” the petition states. “The Defendant acknowledges this in his statement to the Investigator.”

When authorities executed a search warrant on June 6, 2024, Herring’s cell phone was found to have “child sexual abuse materials (CSAM) saved in the photo library, which he acknowledged as his own and provided the passcode for the cell phone to unlock.”

“Investigators and digital forensic examiner have so far observed over 100 image/video files of CSAM on Defendant's cell phone,” the petition continues. “Defendant acknowledges that he has been viewing CSAM since [the] 1990’s and that he views CSAM because he finds it ‘fascinating.’”

During the execution of the search warrant, investigators reportedly witnessed Herring run to the bathroom and flush what he later admitted was methamphetamine. Investigators also found a pipe with white residue in the kitchen, as well as a safe in Herring’s bedroom. He admitted that there was a firearm in the safe, gave investigators the passcode, and they seized a 12-gauge shotgun from inside the safe.

The petition also cites Herring’s “significant criminal background,” including a prior charge of Received Visual Depiction of minor engaging in sexually explicit conduct, transported in interstate commerce by means of computer in a 1998 federal case from the Eastern District of Oklahoma, as well as a 2019 charge of Aggravated Unlawful Use of a Weapon in Jersey County.

In this latest case, Herring faces seven Class 1 felonies for each count of child pornography and a Class 2 felony for unlawful possession of a firearm by a felon.

Court records indicate that as of June 10, 2024, Herring is being held in the custody of the Jersey County Jail. A hearing to grant or deny the state's petition to deny his pretrial release is set for June 17, 2024 at 10:00 a.m.

The issuance of charges is based solely upon probable cause and is not an indication of guilt. All subjects charged with criminal offenses are considered innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.

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