Ramsey man sentenced to 15 years for child porn possession

A 26-year-old Ramsey man was sentenced this week to a total of 15 years for child pornography possession.

Waylon Davis appeared in court on Tuesday, Sept. 5, after pleading guilty to five counts of Class 2 felony child porn possession charges. Judge Christopher Matoush handed down the sentencing, which included three years for each conviction.

According to online court records, Davis was originally charged with 10 counts of unlawful possession of child pornography depicting a victim younger than 13 years old, and the dates of the possession occurred in 2019 and 2020. He was arrested in January 2022.

Attorney General Kwame Raoul announced the sentence on Wednesday, stating that the case was in collaboration with federal law enforcement agencies and local law enforcement officials throughout Illinois in efforts to apprehend offenders who download and trade child porn online.

“Survivors of child abuse and exploitation are re-victimized every time an individual downloads one of these heinous images or videos,” Raoul said in a press release. “I am pleased that the defendant is being held accountable for victimizing innocent children. My office will continue to partner with local law enforcement agencies to protect children and communities throughout Illinois.”

Raoul’s office co-prosecuted the case with Fayette County State’s Attorney Brenda Mathis.

“Thank you to the combined efforts of the Illinois Attorney General’s Office and the Fayette County State’s Attorney’s Office for the successful outcome of this case,” Mathis said in a press release.

The case is part of Attorney General Raoul’s work to investigate and prosecute child pornographers in Illinois. Raoul’s office, with a grant from the U.S. Department of Justice, runs the Illinois Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Force that investigates child exploitation crimes and trains law enforcement agencies. The task force receives CyberTips, or online reports of child pornography, from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. Over the last several years, CyberTipline reports have steadily increased. In 2022, reports to the ICAC increased by 26% over 2021.

Illinois’ ICAC Task Force is one of 61 ICAC task forces throughout the country and is comprised of a network of more than 175 local, county, state and federal law enforcement agencies. Since 2019, the Attorney General’s ICAC Task Force has received more than 32,500 CyberTips and has been involved in more than 485 arrests of sexual predators. Since 2006, the Attorney General’s ICAC Task Force has been involved in more than 1,960 arrests of sexual predators. The task force also has provided internet safety training and education to more than 1 million parents, teachers and students, in addition to more than 23,850 law enforcement professionals.

Attorney General Raoul also reminded the public that online child sexual exploitation can be reported at www.cybertipline.com, and child abuse can be reported at dcfsonlinereporting.dcfs.illinois.gov. In addition, local child advocacy centers can be found at www.childrensadvocacycentersofillinois.org.

Deputy Bureau Chief Shannon O’Brien prosecuted the case for Raoul’s High Tech Crimes Bureau, and Assistant State’s Attorney Jessica Carr prosecuted the case for Mathis’ office.