Former Danville Middle School teacher Mitchell Phillip Wolf, 60, of Danville, California, has been sentenced to 65 months in prison for possession of child pornography. The sentencing took place on January 4, 2016, in the U.S. District Court in Oakland, California.
According to the plea agreement, Wolf admitted to knowingly possessing approximately 50,000 digital files depicting minors engaged in sexually explicit conduct. He also admitted to intentionally saving the image and video files to his personal desktop computer and to assorted CD-ROMs and DVDs that he stored in his home office and bedroom.
On many of the CD-ROMs and DVDs, Wolf hand-labeled their content with terms consistent with child pornography, such as “PTHC” for “pre-teen hardcore.” He also admitted to downloading the digital files from the internet using an online peer-to-peer file sharing program.
The charge against Wolf was brought under 18 U.S.C. § 2252(a)(4)(B), which prohibits the possession of child pornography. Wolf pleaded guilty to the charge on July 8, 2015.
In addition to the prison term, U.S. District Judge Phyllis J. Hamilton also ordered Wolf to serve a ten-year period of supervised release. The conditions of the supervised release include prohibiting Wolf from using computers and the internet, prohibiting him from frequenting locations where children may be present, and requiring him to submit to searches upon request of law enforcement.
The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Silicon Valley Internet Crimes Against Children’s Task Force, and the Contra Costa County District Attorney’s Office. Assistant U.S. Attorney Wade M. Rhyne is prosecuting the case with the assistance of Janice Pagsanjan.
Wolf’s sentence serves as a reminder of the severity of child pornography crimes and the importance of protecting children from exploitation and abuse. The Grimy Times will continue to report on this case and provide updates as more information becomes available.
Related Federal Cases
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- Colin Lovette Bosby, Receipt and Distribution of Child Pornography, California 2023 · California
- Frank W. Coon, Child Pornography Receipt, California 2012 · California
- Brian Caputo, Receipt and Distribution of Child Pornography, California 2016 · Washington
- Jace Jeanes, Child Pornography Distribution, California 2024 · Iowa
Key Facts
- State: California
- Category: Sex Crimes
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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