A former Lititz man wept this morning as he apologized to a Lancaster judge for possessing and disseminating images of child pornography and erotica through his home computer.
"I'm ashamed that I have to be in front of you today," Peter Thayer Ringer, 38, formerly of Sante Fe Drive, told Judge Joseph Madenspacher.
"I never meant to hurt anyone," Ringer said, "most importantly all the children who were exploited" through his crime.
"I've embarrassed my wife and family. I was wrong and I broke the law."
Since his arrest, Ringer said, he has been going to counseling for his addiction to pornography and moved to Bethlehem in Lehigh County as part of a personal commitment to change his behavior.
Madenspacher acknowledged Ringer's efforts to rehabilitate himself, the support of his family, lack of prior criminal record and good work history.
But, Madenspacher said, the state sentencing guidelines call for prison "and I see nothing that mitigates this case at all."
Madenspacher sentenced Ringer to nine to 23 months in Lancaster County Prison, followed by five years probation, for each of the two counts of disseminating the pornography.
It's the dissemination of such pornographic images, Madenspacher said, "that keeps the industry going."
For the additional seven counts of possessing child pornography, Madenspacher sentenced Ringer to seven years concurrent probation. He is to register his address with the state police for 10 years and pay a $1,000 fine.
Defense attorney Barry Goldman described Ringer as a "quality individual," but one who is dealing with mental health issues. Madenspacher granted Goldman's request to make Ringer eligible for the work release program.
Assistant District Attorney Kelly Sekula agreed with the judge that there was no reason to sentence Ringer to probation.
"He says he's ashamed of himself and he should be," Sekula said.
Ringer was arrested in June 2007 by Warwick Township Police after the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children's CyberTipline received information that there was child pornography on Ringer's personal computer.
The information was sent to the Pennsylvania Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force, police said, where Delaware County detectives traced the e-mail address and account to Ringer's computer.
And, according to county documents, the Delaware County detective also received a compact disc containing 205 photographs, some of which were child pornography.
Warwick Township Police, along with Lancaster County detectives, confiscated Ringer's computer and found 113 photographs depicting child pornography, 68 movies containing child pornography and six computer disks containing more images of child pornography.
Most of the pornography, Warwick Township Police Detective Ed Tobin said, involved young girls.
Another Lancaster County man was indicted by a federal grand jury on Wednesday for allegedly taking sexually explicit photographs of children.
Daniel Earl Eyster, 48, of 4 Cameron Court, Adamstown, is charged with the sexual exploitation of children for incidents that investigators say happened between November 2007 and July 2008.
According to the indictment filed in U.S. District Court, Eyster "employed, used, persuaded, induced, enticed and coerced" four minors to engage in sexually explicit conduct resulting in 75 photographs that were stored in his computer.
Eyster was charged in federal court because, according to the indictment, the photos were produced on disks and sent through the mail, making it a federal case.
Eyster was taken into custody last month, officials said, and is being held at a federal detention center pending court hearing.
If convicted, he faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 15 years in prison.
Staff writer Janet Kelley can be reached at cumble@LNPnews.com or 481-6026.
(27)
