Woman Gets Fed Pen for Child Porn

(St. Louis, Missouri) A 60-year-old officeholder with a national charity organization, Sandra Batte, pleaded guilty in February to possession of child pornography and, on Friday, U.S. District Judge Jean C. Hamilton sentenced her to 37 months in federal prison. According to U.S. Assistant District Attorney Hal Goldsmith, her position with the charity had no link to the crime.

Batte admitted her home computer had three images of a naked boy under 12, one showing him in a sex act with a nude adult male, the plea agreement says.

Authorities were alerted to Batte's involvement during investigation of a Texas lawyer named Stuart L. Manley who is serving 30 years for child porn.

She admitted discussing dominance and "daddy-daughter" fantasies and receiving child porn from him via e-mail. She met him in San Antonio, where they had "some sexual contact," and met again in Dallas, the documents show.

Goldsmith, the prosecutor, said that in the correspondence, Batte discussed having sex with Manley and an 11- or 12-year-old boy he was abusing. She knew he was abusing the boy, "and she did absolutely nothing to stop it," Goldsmith told the court.

Defense attorney Art Margulis said Batte was vulnerable to Manley because she battled cancer and was exhausted from fundraising. Weak argument, I'd say.

After being released from prison, Batte will have to register as a sex offender.