CARTERSVILLE, Ga. - A Cartersville man has been sentenced to 10 years in prison for possessing thousands of digital images and videos depicting the rape and sexual abuse of children, including prepubescent minors under the age of 12.
The investigation began in July 2023 when federal agents received information that someone was using a cell phone associated with Southern to share videos and images of child sexual abuse. Agents searched his Cartersville home and found a phone that was hidden in an air vent. A search of the device revealed the images and videos.
In 2013, Southern was convicted of multiple counts of sexual exploitation of a child in state court after he pleaded guilty to the offenses. He was placed on probation and required to register as a sex offender after serving a prison term. But he repeatedly violated the terms of his probation, resulting in additional terms of incarceration in 2014, 2019, and 2020.
Southern has been sentenced to 10 years in prison, followed by a lifetime of supervised release, and ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $28,500.00. Southern pleaded guilty to possession of a visual depiction of a minor engaged in sexually explicit conduct on Dec. 19, 2023.
This case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations, the Bartow County Sheriff’s Office, and the Georgia Bureau of Investigation, with assistance from the Murray County, Georgia Sheriff’s Office and National Center for Missing and Exploited Children.
Assistant United States Attorneys Calvin A. Leipold, III and Theodore S. Hertzberg prosecuted the case.