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A federal grand jury Thursday returned indictments against four Kansas men, including one from Leavenworth, accused of possessing child pornography.

The four cases were not related except that the U.S. Department of Justice is targeting producers and consumers of child pornography for prosecution, said U.S. Attorney Eric Melgren. Project Safe Childhood aims to coordinate federal, state and local resources to protect children from sexual predators.

“Children whose photographs are being distributed over the Internet are the victims of sexual abuse,” said U.S. Attorney Eric Melgren. “Trading in images of the sexual abuse of children is a crime, not a private matter.”

In 2007, federal prosecutors in Kansas filed about three cases a month under Project Safe Childhood (a total of 38 cases for the year). In the first quarter of 2008, they filed 12 cases.

Indictments on charges of child pornography were returned against the following defendants:

• Shawn B. Mullen, 44, Leavenworth, is charged with one count of receiving child pornography via the Internet and one count of possession of child pornography. According to the indictment, Mullen paid $99.95 for a membership allowing him access to child pornography. The crimes are alleged to have occurred Oct. 24, 2006, and July 13, 2007, in Leavenworth.

• Sean Everett, 36, Atchison, is charged with one count of receiving child pornography via the Internet, and one count of possession of child pornography. According to the indictment, Everett paid $94.95 for a membership allowing him access to child pornography. The crimes are alleged to have occurred Dec. 11, 2006, and Nov. 14, 2007, in Atchison, Kan.

• Channing Burgess, 22, Lawrence, is charged with one count of receiving child pornography via the Internet, and one count of possession of child pornography. According to the complaint, he paid $79.99 for a membership allowing him access to child pornography. The crimes are alleged to have occurred Deb. 18, 2006, and Aug. 17, 2007, in Lawrence, Kan.

• Brian W. Clark, 29, Gardner, Kan., is charged with one count of advertising that he wanted to obtain child pornography, one count of receiving child pornography and one count of possession of child pornography. The crimes are alleged to have occurred in March and May 2006 in Gardner, Kan.

If convicted, Clark faces a penalty of not less than 15 years and not more than 30 years and a fine up to $250,000 on the charge of advertising for child pornography.

All of the defendants, if convicted, face federal prison penalties and fines of more than $200,000, on the possession crimes.

The Lawrence Police Department and the Federal Bureau of Investigation worked on the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Kim Martin is prosecuting.

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