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Youngstown man gets 27 years in prison on child-sex charges

YOUNGSTOWN — Jason S. Huffman of Youngstown was sentenced to 27 years and two months in federal prison after pleading guilty to five charges relating to sexual exploitation of children.

Huffman, 50, of North Hartford Avenue, pleaded in U.S. District Court in April to two counts of sexual exploitation of children, two counts of transportation of visual depictions of minors engaged in sexually explicit conduct and one count of possessing child pornography.

Huffman’s indictment states he enticed a minor to engage in sexually explicit conduct Aug. 5, 2019; transported child pornography through interstate or foreign means, such as a computer, from April 20, 2015, through about July 26, 2017; and possessing child pornography on a cellphone Feb. 17, 2021.

U.S. District Court Judge Christopher Boyko in Cleveland sentenced Huffman this week to a total of 328 months in prison with credit for 16 months spent in federal custody awaiting trial.

Of the 328 months, he received 268 months (more than 22 years) in prison on the counts of sexual exploitation of children and five years on the other three charges.

Huffman originally was charged in Youngstown Municipal Court and indicted in Mahoning County Common Pleas Court on 13 counts of pandering obscenities involving a minor, but those charges were dismissed when Huffman was indicted federally in May. The local charges were filed by the Mahoning Valley Human Trafficking Task Force in February 2021.

The task force stated in February that agents and Mahoning County Sheriff’s deputies served a child pornography warrant at Huffman’s home on the pandering obscenities charges.

The task force was assisted by the Ohio Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force and the U.S. Marshals during the investigation and while serving the warrant for his arrest.

Huffman’s attorney, Walter Camino of Solon, filed a memorandum with Boyko earlier this month, saying Huffman has a “history of substance abuse” and never before served more than one year in prison and had no previous history of sexual abuse or sexual pornography-related offenses.

He requested that Huffman get the minimum sentence of 15 years in prison.

The memorandum states that Huffman is “a prior victim of childhood sexual abuse” as explained in the presentence report on Huffman’s background provided to the judge.

erunyan@vindy.com

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